Everywhere You Go
by TimeLady-12
Summary: Amaya Osbourne was shocked to say the least when she ended up in Middle Earth. But things got even stranger when she ended up on an important quest with a company of dwarves. But one thing was for certain, it certainly wouldn't be boring. Fili/OC
1. Chapter One

Chapter One

I blinked and rubbed my eyes. I blinked again. Nope. I was still in the middle of a forest. I forest, may I add, that I had never seen before and for that matter, was no where near a few minutes ago. If it was a few minutes ago.

Maybe I should explain myself. My name is Amaya Osbourne, and I never would have thought that anything interesting would come of my life. Anyway, as I was saying… I'm from the city of York in England. Quite a pleasant city if you live in one of the nicer areas. I, however, had spent the first nineteen years of my life working, either at school, or at one of my jobs I had to pay my university fees. So naturally, it was quite a surprise when I woke up in the middle of a forest when I was previously walking home from work in the middle of a crowded city.

Brushing the dirt off of my jeans, I looked around. Not that it did any good. Everywhere looked the same to me. Trees, trees and more trees. Shrugging, I decided to start walking in a random direction. No use just standing around. I could find out what had happened later.

_Maybe I fell over and was knocked unconscious? _I thought. _Or maybe I'm already home and just dreaming? Although this all feels very real for a dream. Maybe I was kidnapped!_

I must have been walking for a few hours before I finally made any sort of progress. It wasn't exactly the edge of the forest, but I'd stumbled across a little stream, and at least that was something. Kneeling down, I splashed some water on my face before taking a drink. I seriously had no idea how I'd managed to get so filthy from the few hours I'd been here. Then again, I never was a very neat person.

After sitting there for a few more minutes, I finally made a decision. It was starting to get dark, and there was no way I was walking around in the dark. So finding a comfy (or as comfy as it got around here it seems) spot on the ground, I lay down and closed my eyes. Not that it did much good. I was in the middle of a creepy place on my own. Definitely not the most relaxing situation in the world.

Eventually I did manage to drift off to sleep. Unfortunately that only lasted a minute before I heard the faint sound of metal. Incredibly faint, sure, but I heard it none the less. Luckily for me, because when I cracked my eyes open, I was being pointed at with an incredibly long, incredibly _sharp_ sword.

"Woah!" I yelled, backing up slowly. "What the hell?" Standing up, I could now see the wielder of the sword. He seemed quite small. Well, he would have if I hadn't have noticed that I seemed to have shrunk. I only came up to his shoulders. Wasn't that _great. _Looking up, I could see that he seemed to have dropped his sword, something that what a great relief. "Dude!"

"What are you doing here?" he asked. His voice was deep, and seemed to hold a lot of authority.

"Trying to get to sleep." I answered. "Obviously not going so well." I gestured towards his sword.

The man sighed, dropping his sword so it was resting by his leg. "I _meant_, what are you doing in the middle of a forest?"

This time it was my time to sigh. What did he _think_ I was doing in the middle of a forest? "Having a party. What do you think? I got lost." I bit my lip. "Well, not lost exactly. More to the fact that I have no idea where I am. At all."

"I see." I stared at him for about a minute before I realised he wasn't going to say anymore. Before I could sit back down, he began to speak again. "You will come with me."

"Urm…will I now? Because, honestly, I have no idea who you are." To be honest, I was very tempted at this point to run around yelling _stranger danger!_

"Would you rather remain lost in the forest?" he raised an eyebrow.

I paused. He raised a very valid argument. Besides, he had a sword, and if he wanted to kill me, he would have already done so, surely? It wasn't like a posed much of a threat at the moment. "Fine. I suppose…" I drifted off. "I'm Amaya, by the way." His expression didn't change. "…just in case, you… you know…wanted to know."

His mouth lifted up a fraction for a moment, but it was so brief I thought I'd imagined it. "Thorin Oakenshield."

-8-

For the next few days I travelled through the forest with Thorin. I had quickly discovered that he was not very talkative at all, and while I wasn't the most talkative person in the world, I found myself talking a lot more than I would have normally, trying to find out more about the man I was travelling with.

I had discovered that he was a dwarf (something that surprised me as I was at least a head shorter), and was travelling to a small place called the Shire, which obviously, I'd never heard of. Other than that, he didn't reveal much. Although I was grateful none the less for the food and water supply that he had. I was pretty sure I would have starved otherwise.

Instead, I decided to ask general questions; places nearby, places faraway, general history of where I was. (I'd quickly come to the conclusion that I must have been in a different world for dwarves to exist) Each night, when I was going to sleep, my thoughts raced around my head trying to take in and remember as much as possible.

As the days went by, I came to the realization that there was a bigger chance that I would be staying here, and strangely, it didn't bother me. Not at that moment anyway. I didn't really have anything going for me at home. Life was pretty miserable. I started to imagine possibly starting a life here.

After the third day of travelling, we finally came to a clearing in the trees. What I saw was one of the most beautiful places I had ever seen. There were hills with little what I assumed were houses judging by the doors and windows in the front, and it was so _green. _Much greener than anything I had ever seen back home. I could see people walking along small pathways from the distance I was at going about their daily business.

"Is this the Shire?" I asked Thorin.

"Yes. Now, I need to go and sort out some supplies for my journey. I think it would be best if you find our host for this evening. My sources tell me that there should be a mark on his door. Look out for that." He started to walk away.

"Wait! Thorin!" He stopped. "How long are you going to be?" I was anxious. I didn't really want to be alone in an unknown place.

"I shouldn't be long." And then he was gone. I sighed and looked around. Well, this place wasn't _too_ big; it shouldn't take too long to find a door with a strange mark. 'Although the mark could look like anything', I thought.

Deciding it would be best if I found this place before it got dark, I set off down the (quite steep it turns out) hill I was standing on. It turns out that I wasn't that far from any (what I still assumed were) houses. I had to admit, these houses were quite cute. The doorways were perfectly round, and I could hear people's voices coming in through the window. Each had a little garden that was kept to perfection, not a blade of grass out of place. Keeping an eye out for any 'marks' on the doors I carried on. I felt quite out of place here, despite the feeling of peace that hung around the place. Walking on, I passed a small woman walking towards me. However it wasn't the slightly alarmed look she gave me (for what reason I had no idea), or the fact that she sped up slightly. It was her feet that slightly freaked me out. They were huge. Huge, big hairy feet that I had certainly never seen before on anyone. Shrugging, I decided to let it go. It was probably normal around here, and I was really in no place to judge anyone here.

It was a few hours later before I started thinking of giving up. There were far more houses here than I had originally thought. Just as the sun was starting to set, I found myself on top of a rather tall hill. Again. Needless to say, I was pretty tired by now. Looking around, I saw a small bench nearby. Going to sit down on it, I groaned. This day was not good. I was completely alone in a strange place, and I could not, for the life of me, find that damn door!

I turned around, trying to get a sense of where I was. What I saw surprised me. There, behind me this whole time, was a door. And on that door, a mark! Now I honestly had no idea if this was the mark I was looking for, but it was the first one I had seen, so it seemed good enough for me. And it definitely looked out of place on the otherwise perfectly painted green door.

Leaping up, I rushed over to the door, and quickly knocked. Thorin was mad if he thought I was going to be staying out here for the night. Only having to wait for a few seconds or so, the door opened and I came face to face with a small man, much the same as the woman I had seen earlier, although…obviously, this person was more…manly, I guess the word was?

He was wearing a patchy dressing gown, and I was happy to say that I was actually a little taller than him!

"Ur…hello." I stuttered. What was I supposed to say?

"Hello."

"Oh! Urm…this is going to sound really strange, but I have no idea where I am and I'm on my own, and I was pretty sure this was where I was told to go, and he said he was going to be here soon and by now I'm probably rambling…so yeah…"

"Right! Well, in that case, you'd better come in." The man looked a bit bewildered by this point.

"Thanks." I smiled. "I'm Amaya. Amaya Osbourne."

"Bilbo Baggins."

-8-

A/N: All right! First chapter. Next up, the rest of the company!

Please review and favourite! :)


	2. Chapter Two

Chapter Two

It turns out I had interrupted Bilbo just when he was finishing his dinner. Fish, by the smell coming in through the kitchen doorway. He quickly rushed out bringing two plates of, indeed, fish. I wasn't to be honest expecting any food. I mean, I'd already basically barged my way into his house; there was no reason at all for him to give me any food. None the less, I was very grateful. My stomach had been rumbling for hours.

"Thanks." I said, sitting down opposite.

"You're welcome." Bilbo replied, giving me a small smile. I could tell he was just as comfortable with this situation as I was. i.e. not very. 'Oh well', I thought, digging into my food. "So," he started. "You said you didn't know where you were. Where are you from?" Thankfully, I was saved giving an answer by the doorbell ringing. Bilbo excused himself and went to answer the door. _Phew_, I thought. What was I supposed to tell him? That I was from this strange world that he probably knew nothing about and was magically transported to this place.

I'd come to the realization when I was outside that this place ('Middle Earth', as Thorin had called it), was vaguely familiar to me. Unfortunately, I could not for the life of me, remember where it was familiar from, so I was back to ground zero. I took small bites of my dinner, trying to make it last.

"Which way, laddie?" I heard a rough voice ask Bilbo. Obviously the person who had rung the doorbell. "Is it down here?"

"I…is what down where?"

"Supper. He said there'd be food, and lots of it."

"H…he said? Who said?"

I turned around to see a large man walk into the room. He had a huge beard, a bald head, and he definitely looked like someone I didn't want to cross. I saw him give a small smirk at the way he was making Bilbo uncomfortable, and proceeded to sit in Bilbo's seat. Giving him a small, polite smile, I went back to my own dinner as the man helped himself to Bilbo's. I looked up to see him eating all of Bilbo's fish, and I don't use the word 'all' lightly. I mean _all_, head and everything. It wasn't that nice to watch if I'm honest.

"Mmmmm…very good this. Any more?" Quickly loosing my appetite (God only _knows _why!), I slid the plate across the table, receiving a mumbled 'cheers lass' in response through the fish that was being devoured again. Bilbo meanwhile had scurried off to retrieve more food, and had now appeared with a plate full of biscuits that he quickly placed on the table.

"Help yourself." He said, stepping back quickly as though he would be wounded by just being near this man. "It's just that…um…I wasn't expecting company." I stifled a laugh. _That _much was obvious. He was about to point something else out (which I assumed would be something equally as obvious) when the bell rang again.

"That'll be the door." Bilbo huffed and shuffled off to see who else had disturbed him this day. "So, lass, what brings you here?" I paused. Partly due to the fact that I hadn't expected him to talk to me, and also because of the fact that I had no idea what to say. What was I _supposed_ to say? I settled with the truth, or as much as I could say without sounding completely mad.

"Well, I got lost in the woods, I think…anyway, I met this guy, and he helped me and told me to wait here until he came back." I thought back on what I said. Yep, completely mad.

"Ah, I see." He chuckled.

"What! Don't judge me. If anything, you owe me. I gave you my dinner." I internally winced.

"You didn't have to." He pointed out. He had me there.

"Yeah, well…shut up." He chuckled (again! I was beginning to think I was brought here to be the amusement of this guy), and walked away to get more food.

"Evening, brother dear." I heard a new voice say. Since when did someone else arrive?

"Oh, by my beard. You are shorter and wider than last we met."

"Wider, not shorter. Sharp enough for both of us." I walked around the corner to see who was talking. I came face to face with someone who was indeed shorter than the first man, although he had a full hair of white hair with a huge beard to match. And he definitely seemed a lot cheerier than his brother. "Ah!" he said, catching sight of me. "And who would this be?"

"Me? Oh, I'm Amaya." I smiled.

"Pleasure to meet you, lass." He smiled back. "I'm Balin, and I'm sure you've already been introduced to my brother, Dwalin." So that was the other man's name! But I went along with it and nodded anyway.

"Uh, excuse me; sorry, I hate to interrupt." Butted in Bilbo. "Ah, but the thing us, I'm not entirely sure you're in the right house." Not surprisingly, he was ignored and the two, I was later informed dwarves, walked into his pantry to search for more food. "It's not that I don't like visitors; I…I like visitors as much as the next Hobbit (So that's what Bilbo was!), but I do like to know them before they come visiting."

"What's this?" asked Dwalin, picking up a huge lump of moldy cheese.

"I don't know…cheese? It's gone blue."

"It's riddled with mold."

"The thing is…" continued Bilbo. "I…I don't know any of you, not in the slightest. I don't mean to be blunt, but I uh…but I had to speak my mind. I'm sorry."

"Apology accepted!" grinned Balin. I walked over to them.

"The cheese is meant to be moldy, you know."

"Really?" they asked. "I find that hard to believe." Snorted Dwalin. "Why would you eat that?"

"Don't ask me. I've never liked it." I shrugged.

"Right. Come on, lass. Let's get some food down ya. You're as thin as a twig!" I rolled my eyes and followed them to the table. I sat down and watched as they brought more and more food onto the table and gathered more chairs for others who I guessed were coming. I was so busy watching these two, I never noticed that two more dwarves had arrived until I noticed that Dwalin and Balin had stopped to greet them. I really needed to start paying more attention.

"Fili, Kili, come on, give us a hand." Dwalin said. I remained seated, not bothering to move from my spot. By this point in the day, I really couldn't be bothered.

"Now hang on a minute, Mister Dwalin, you must introduce us to this lovely young lady." Said one of the new dwarves. I looked up to see the two new additions staring down at me. The darker haired one had a mischievous grin on his face, probably the one who spoke, whereas his brother (I was assuming they were brothers by their very similar sounding names) was staring at me with this weird expression. He had a golden blonde head of hair and was slightly shorter than his brother with more of a beard and a braided moustache. (Which I found strange, but oddly attractive) He was nudged in the ribs by his brother and he quickly snapped out of whatever he was in. "I apologise for my brother, miss. I am Kili and this is my brother Fili."

"Hey." I replied. "I'm Amaya."

"That is a beautiful name, Miss Amaya." Said Fili, walking up and placing a kiss on my hand. I was sure that my face was a dark shade of red by this point.

"Thanks." I mumbled. This was beyond awkward. I wasn't used to _that_ kind of attention, no matter what it was, and I had no idea on how to react. I decided the best course of action was to see what all the noise was in the hallway, and turned to realize there was now a lot more dwarves in Bilbo's house. A lot more. And it was very amusing to watch, partly due to the fact that they were in a massive pile in the front porch. Standing up mumbling, they wasted no time in scattering all over the house, carrying chairs, food, drink, literally anything they could get their hands on, and carrying it into the dining room as if they owned the place.

"How about we introduce you to everyone?" came a voice from behind me. I turned to find that Kili had followed me, a smirk still spread across his face.

"Yeah…that would be…good." I stuttered, a little overwhelmed with all the new company.

"Ok, well, that over there is Oin, there's Gloin, you know Dwalin and Balin I'm assuming, Bifur, Bofur, Bombur, Dori, Nori, Ori, and the wizard over there is Gandalf." My mouth dropped.

"Wizard? Like, Harry Potter wizard? You know, expecto patronum…that kind of wizard?" By the bewildered look from Kili, and everyone else seated in the dining room which we were back in, I quickly remembered that the people here would have absolutely no idea who or what any or those things were, so I quickly explained myself. "I'm sorry, I mean like, a magic wizard? He can do magic?"

"Of course he can do magic, lass!" said the dwarf with the funny hat. Bofur, I think he was called. "He's a wizard!"

"Right…of course." Duh.

"Come sit over here, Miss Amaya. We got you some food." Baffled, I maneuvered myself over the chairs and dwarves surrounding the table and sat down between Fili and Kili. Looking down at the plate that was pushed in front of me, my eyes widened. The plate was piled sky high full of food. Bread, meat, cheese, you name it, it was probably there. There was no way in hell I was going to eat all this. But, never one to back down from a challenge, I dove right in, causing some of the dwarves around me to chuckle. I could vaguely overhear Bilbo over all the noise.

"No, no, that's Grandpa Mungo's chair! No, I'm sorry; you'll have to take it back please. Take it back…it's antique. Not for sitting on! Thank you. That's a book, not a coaster. Put that map down, thank you."

"I cannot hear what you're saying!" yelled Oin. For most of this part of the night, I was quiet, partly due to the fact that I had no idea what to say, and partly because I was too busy eating. I was also fascinated by the fact that Bombur could catch a bit of food thrown from the other side of the room in his mouth. _Yep, _I thought, _dwarves are cool._

"Who wants an ale?" asked Fili, who had apparently left to make several cups. _I really need to pay more attention. _

"Let him have another drink!" shouted Dwalin.

"Here you go." I was wondering what Dwalin was talking about until I watched him pour the ale down poor Oin's hearing trumpet, making him splutter in anger. Although I had to laugh along with the others. "And one for the lady." Added Fili, gently putting a cup of ale on the table in front of me.

"On the count of three!" Shouted one of the dwarves. I furrowed my eyebrows. What was going on now? "One, two, three!" As soon as the number three was said, all the dwarves sat around the table were immediately quiet and literally poured the ale into their mouths, making it drip all down their beards. Nice… Not to mention that once they'd all finished a competition seemed to start as to who had the loudest burp. Ori, sweet little Ori who had been asking me questions for most of the night, surprisingly won. Out of the corner of my eye I saw Bilbo walk away in disgust. I compromised to just sipping my ale.

"So, Miss Amelia, where are you from?" asked Bofur. I looked around to see I had got all of the dwarves' attention.

"Oh! Urm…well…York." As if they knew where that was.

"York? Never heard of it. Is it down south?"

"Uh…not really…it's not really anywhere around here, I don't think." What the hell did that even mean? This answer only peaked the dwarves' interest, and soon I was being bombarded with questions.

"What did you do there?" asked Ori, who was writing everything down in his journal.

"I went to university. And worked as a waitress in my spare time." I chuckled at the confused expressions on their faces.

"What's university?"

"It's somewhere that you go to learn something. For example, I went to study psychology, which is the study of other people- how they behave, interact, think…" The dwarves gave a collective "Ohhhhhh!"

-8-

"Excuse me, that is a doily, not a dishcloth!" shouted Bilbo to Bofur once the meal had finished. Well, once the dwarves had stopped eating anyway. Knowing them, they would probably be back for more food if there was even some left.

"But it's full of holes!"

"It's supposed to look like that, it's crochet."

"Oh, and a wonderful game it is too, if you for the balls for it."

"Bebother and confusticate these dwarves!" I smiled at Bilbo (honestly, it was quite funny watching him argue with these dwarves considering they were both as stubborn as each other), but decided on letting Gandalf handle him. I'd probably end up making him madder, and I'd already learnt that a partially mad Hobbit was scary enough.

"So what do you think of dwarves so far, Miss Amelia?" came a voice from behind me, making me jump.

"Fili! You scared me." His grin didn't falter. "Well… you are certainly…different."

"Good different, though?"

"Of course." I smiled. Jesus, a full conversation with this guy without sounding like a complete prat! One point to me.

"I have to admit though, when I first saw you, I thought you were a dwarf. I mean, you're definitely the size of one."

"So why don't you now?"

He chuckled. Did anything this dwarf did not sound amazing? I was beginning to think not. "Well, besides the fact that you have no idea about anything from around here, you are far to hairless to be a dwarf." His hand skimmed my chin. "Not that that's a bad thing of course."

"Wait. Women dwarves have beards?"

"Yes." He laughed at the shocked expression on my face.

"And you like that?"

"Well, each to their own. Most dwarves don't court anyway, too engrossed in their work to think of that sort of thing. And a dwarf only loves once. When you see the right person, you know it." His eyes softened when he said that. I wondered if he had met someone back home, and wondered about the disappointed feeling I had at the thought. "But there are barely any dwarf women. Only about a third of our population are female. It's sometimes hard to tell who are women and who are men, they look so alike!" We both laughed at that. "What's it like where you're from?"

"Oh! Very different to what you're used to, I'm sure. People don't really get together because they love each other, I guess. I'm not really sure how it all works; I was never one for relationships." Fili nodded as if he was in deep thought, and then the grin returned.

"Well, I'm sure that they were not good enough for you. Come, sanâzyung." He led me to the doorway of the dining room, before stepping over to Ori, Bilbo and Gandalf. I was confused as to what he called me. Was it in some sort of Dwarf language? And what did it mean?

"Excuse me." Said Ori to Bilbo. "I'm sorry to interrupt, but what should I do with my plate?"

"Here you go, Ori, give it to me." Fili took the plate from Ori and threw it across the room to Kili, shooting me a wink. I cursed myself when I blushed. Kili then threw the plate behind his back to Bifur who was standing by the sink, and caught it without even looking. Will dwarves ever cease to amaze me tonight? Suddenly, there were plates and utensils flying everywhere, and the dwarves sitting at the table started creating a beat with their fists and spare utensils.

"Excuse me!" shouted Bilbo, over all the noise. "That's my mother's West Farthing crockery; it's over a hundred years old! And can-can you not do that? You'll blunt them!"

"Ooh, d'hear that, lads?" teased Bofur. "He says we'll blunt the knives!" Then, suddenly, I felt as if I was in some messed up version of High School Musical involving dwarves, as they all began to sing:

_Blunt the knives, bend the forks_

_Smash the bottles and burn the corks_

_Chip the glasses and crack the plates_

_That's what Bilbo Baggins hates!_

_Cut the cloth and tread on the fat_

_Leave the bones on the bedroom mat_

_Pour the milk on the pantry floor_

_Splash the wine on every door_

_Dump the crocks in a boiling bowl_

_Pound them up with a thumping pole_

_When you've finished, if any are whole_

_Send then down the hall to roll_

_That's what Bilbo Baggins hates!_

By the end of the song, my cheeks were hurting from grinning so much, and I was clapping along with everyone else. Well, everyone but Bilbo, who still did not look very impressed. Looking into the kitchen, I saw that all of the dishes were clean and neatly piled by the sink. That was so cool. I walked over to Fili and Kili.

"Nice song. You should start a band." They laughed and we walked into the hallway, when suddenly, there were three loud knocks on the door making everyone fall silent.

"He is here." Said Gandalf. _That better be Thorin,_ I thought to myself.

-8-

A/N: All right! So, the company has arrived! And a nice big update! The next one shouldn't be too long!

Please review and favourite!


	3. Chapter Three

Chapter Three

It was Thorin. Thank God! It wasn't that I didn't enjoy the company I was currently in- they were certainly a friendly bunch- but it was nice to see the first person that had actually helped me first in this world. Having saying that, he didn't look like he was in the 'helping' mood. Particularly because of the scowl that was on his face at the particular moment.

"Gandalf." He said. "I thought you said this place would be easy to find. I lost my way, twice. Wouldn't have found it al all had it not been for that mark on the door." Ha! So it wasn't just me that had trouble finding this place! I knew it.

"Mark?" exclaimed Bilbo, pushing his way through the mass of dwarves that had gathered in front of him, and in front of me. "There's no mark on that door. It was painted a week ago!"

"There is a mark; I put it there myself." Countered Gandalf. "Bilbo Baggins, allow me to introduce the leader of our company, Thorin Oakenshield."

"So this is the Hobbit. Tell me, Mr Baggins, have you done much fighting?" I didn't envy Bilbo at the moment. The look of intense…well, intenseness, Thorin was giving Bilbo was enough to make anyone squirm.

"Pardon me?"

"Axe or sword? What's your weapon of choice?"

"Well, I have some skill at conkers, if you must know, but I fail to see why that's relevant." I stifled a snort.

"Thought as much. He looks more like a grocer than a burglar." Seeing Thorin about to walk into the next room, I scurried through the hoard of dwarves, which let me tell you, was very hard to push through!

"Oy!" I shouted, much to the surprise of the other dwarves. Guess I hadn't remembered to tell them that I knew Thorin. Oh well. "You better not have forgotten about me!" I mean, come on. He'd been the one to tell me to come here in the first place. Thorin turned around with a partially amused look on his face. I guess that's all you really got from him. Well, it was good enough.

"How could I forget about you?" he replied, obviously thinking of the times when I had not shut up when I was walking with him in the forest. I knew I'd rubbed off on him! He's already using sarcasm! "Anyway, I see you found your way here."

"Yeah, after about a day of searching." I muttered, trailing after him into the dining room.

"You've been looked after well?" he asked.

"Oh, yeah! I've had the time of my life." Thorin rolled his eyes and sat at the head of the table, obviously seeing as he was the head of this company, while the rest of us sat mainly where we had sat before, me next to Fili and Kili.

"How do you know Uncle Thorin?" asked Kili, listening to our conversation.

"He's your uncle?" I spluttered.

"Yes." Replied Kili, puffing out his chest, obviously feeling very proud of that fact.

"That must be…fun." Fun? Seriously? What was I saying?

"I know he doesn't seem like it, but he does have a soft side. After our father died when we were younger, he acted as our father figure, and we couldn't wish for better." Explained Fili. "But you haven't answered Kili's question. How do you know Uncle?"

"Oh! Well, remember me saying that I was lost in the woods and a guy found me and directed me here?" They nodded. "That was Thorin. He told me to find this place and wait until he came. I had no idea what I was expecting to be honest." I chuckled nervously. I was crap at explaining things, I swear to God. "Definitely not a bunch of rowdy dwarves, that's for sure! We don't even have dwarves where I come from."

"There are no dwarves?" asked Ori, pulling his book out again. It seemed most of the others were listening to our conversation. I guess privacy wasn't a big thing now. And it was must be weird to hear of a world where you don't exist.

"No…they only exist in stories and fairytales." The looks of outrage from the others suggested I'd offended them. Oops. "We only have humans…well, I guess you'd say the race of Man."

"Strange…"

-8-

"What news from the meeting in Ered Luin? Did they all come?" asked Balin, once Thorin had been given some food from Bilbo.

"Aye. Envoys from all seven kingdoms." The dwarves murmured their joy. I guess that was a good thing?

"What do the dwarves of the Iron Hills say? Is Dain with us?"

"They will not come." The dwarves now moaned. I joined in.

"What are you doing?" asked Fili.

"Joining in. That was bad news right?" He just shook his head, looking amused.

"They say this quest is ours, and ours alone." Continued Thorin.

"You're going on a quest?" squeaked Bilbo.

"Yeah." I echoed, hoping, finally, that I would discover what Thorin was planning. "You're going on a quest?"

"Bilbo, my dear fellow, let us have a little more light." Said Gandalf. Bilbo hurried off and quickly returned with a medium sized lamp. "Far to the east, over ranges and rivers, beyond woodlands and wastelands, lies a single solitary peak." The wizard certainly was dramatic.

"The Lonely Mountain?" asked Bilbo, reading off a piece of parchment in front of Thorin.

"Aye." Spoke up Gloin. "Oin has read the portents, and the portents say it is time."

"Ravens have been seen flying back to the mountain as it was foretold: When the birds of yore return to Erebor, the reign of the beast will end."

"What beast?" asked Bilbo. _Beast_. I knew this world seemed too good to be true. Beautiful woodlands, good looking guys (not that I was thinking of Fili, oh no!), but there was always a catch!

"Well, that would be a reference to Smaug the Terrible, chiefest and greatest calamity of our age." Informed Bofur, obviously not being very helpful for the Hobbit considering how his skin got paler by several shades. I wasn't happy with the facts he was saying either, but at least I remained rather calm; at least on the outside. "Airbourne fire-breather, teeth like razors, claws like meathooks, extremely fond of precious metals…"

"Yes, I know what a dragon is." Interrupted Bilbo. Great, a dragon. Anything else I needed to know?

"I'm not afraid!" exclaimed Ori, standing up, looking determined. "I'm up for it. I'll give him a taste of the Dwarfish iron right up his jacksie!"

"Sit down!" hissed Dori, pulling his younger brother back into his seat. I looked at him and gave him a small smile, to which he blushed and looked away.

"The task would be difficult enough with an army behind us." Said Balin. "But we number just thirteen, and not thirteen of the best, nor brightest."

"Ah, ever the optimist…" I muttered. I heard Fili and Kili laugh.

"What did he say?" asked Oin. I wasn't sure whether he was joking or not, but when he pulled an ear trumpet out, I figured not.

"We may be few in number, but we're fighters, all of us, to the last dwarf!" encouraged Fili, trying to give an encouraging look to the others. It…sort of worked. I swear, so far this dwarf was pretty much perfect, and I felt like I'd known him for years. Which was odd, considering I mainly avoided people in my world. Far too much hassle. And I didn't like them. At all.

"Nice little speech." I said, turning to face him. "Very inspiring."

"Well I try." We laughed.

"And you forget!" added Kili, sending me a little smirk while I was talking to his brother. I glared at him. "We have a wizard in our company. Gandalf will have killed hundreds of dragons in his time."

"Oh, well, now, uh, I…I…I wouldn't say that, I…" The wizard spluttered.

"How many then?" demanded Dori.

"Uh, what?"

"Well, how many dragons have you killed? Go on, give us a number!"

"Hmm…" Then the arguing started. All the dwarves getting to their feet arguing about Lord only knows what! It was rather amusing to be honest. Some of them were getting rather red in the face.

"What have you started?" I asked Kili, who was looking as amused as I felt as he looked around.

"I didn't say anything! It was Dori that pushed the subject, not me."

"Yes, but you started it." I gave him my 'point proven' face, which was just me smirking and raising my eyebrows in a rather smug manner, before turning back around.

"Shazara!" shouted Thorin, in some language to which I had no clue what he was saying. It seemed to work though as the room became silent and the dwarves settled down. "If we have read these signs, do you not think others will have read them too? Rumours have begun to spread. The dragon Smaug has not been seen for 60 years. Eyes look east to the mountain, assessing, wondering, weighing the risk. Perhaps the vast wealth of our people now lies unprotected. Do we sit back while others claim what is rightfully ours? Or do we seize this chance to take back Erebor? Du Bekâr! Du Bekâr!" The dwarves cheered, while all I could think was, _that speech had to rehearsed._

"You forget." Said Balin. "The front gate is sealed. There is no way into the mountain." Way to be a kill joy.

"That, my dear Balin, is not entirely true." Replied Gandalf. Quite slowly if you ask me, Gandalf reached into his cloak and pulled out a rather old looking key on a long chain. It must have been pretty important judging from the awed look on Thorin's face.

"How came you by this?"

"It was given to me by your father, by Thrain, for safekeeping. It is yours now."

"If there is a key, there must be a door." Stated Fili, looking excited.

"These runes speak of a hidden passage to the lower hills."

"There's another way in!" shouted Kili. _No shit Sherlock. _

"Well, if we can find it, but dwarf doors are invisible when closed. The answer lies hidden somewhere in this map and I do not have the skill to find it." I let out a 'disappointed' sigh at this, which received a glare from the wizard in question. "But there are others in Middle-Earth who can. The task I have in mind will require a great deal of stealth, and no small amount of courage. But, if we are careful and clever, I believe it can be done."

"That's why we need a burglar." Inputted Ori.

"Hmm…a good one, too." Agreed Bilbo. "An expert, I'd imagine."

"And are you?" asked Gloin.

"Am I what?"

"He said he's an expert!" said Oin, clearly not hearing what the Hobbit had said. Several other dwarves laughed at Bilbo's face.

"M…me? No, no, no, no, no. I'm not a burglar; I've never stolen a thing in my life!"

"I'm afraid I have to agree with Mr. Baggins. He's hardly burglar material." Said Balin. I saw Bilbo nodding in agreement.

"Aye. The wild is no place for gentlefolk who can neither fight nor fend for themselves." I saw Dwalin give me a look as he said that.

"Hey! I am perfectly capable of looking after myself!" I exclaimed. God knows I'd been doing it for long enough.

"He's not saying your not, lass." Said Balin. "But you are a woman, and…"

"And? What has that got to do with anything?"

"The wilderness is not place for a woman such as yourself."

"Excuse me…!"

"Enough!" boomed Gandalf, seeing to get a lot bigger and dim all the lights in the room. "If I say that Bilbo Baggins is a burglar, then a burglar he is." He shrunk back to his original height. "Hobbits are remarkably light on their feet. In fact, they can pass unseen by most if they choose. And while the dragon is accustomed to the smell of dwarf, the scent of hobbit is all but unknown to him, which gives us a distinct advantage. You asked me to find the fourteenth member of this company, and I have chosen Mr Baggins. There's a lot more to him than appearances suggest, and he's got a great deal more to offer than any of you know, including himself. You must trust me on this." He seemed to take a big breath in and out. "As for Miss Osbourne. I am not sure of her coming. However, I see a lot of potential in her. Nonetheless, it is Thorin's decision."

"She comes." Said Thorin, giving me a look saying we'll talk later. I'd learnt to interpret his many 'looks' throughout the few days of travelling with him in the forest. "And very well. As for the Hobbit, we will do it your way."

"No, no, no!" piped up Bilbo, now that the attention had turned to him again.

"Give him the contract."

"Please!"

"Alright, we're off!" exclaimed Bofur.

Balin handed Bilbo a huge contract. Damn it if I had to read one of those. "It's just the usual summary of out-of-pocket expenses, time required, remuneration, funeral arrangements, so forth."

"Funeral arrangements?" squeaked Bilbo. "Let's see…terms: cash on delivery, up to but not exceeding one fourteenth of total profit, if any. Seems fair. Eh, present company shall not be liable for injuries inflicted by or sustained as a consequence thereof including but not limited to lacerations…evisceration…incineration?"

"Oh, aye." Enthused Bofur. "He'll melt the flesh off your bones in the blink of an eye."

"Huh." Bilbo looked a little breathless by this point. Poor thing. I wasn't entirely happy with what Bofur was saying, (what sane person would be) but Bilbo did not look comfortable in the slightest. I found myself leaning into Fili as the _very nice_ description of this dragon carried on.

"You all right, laddie?" asked Balin.

"Uh, yeah…feel a bit faint."

"Think furnace with wings." Carried on Bofur.

"Air, I…I…I need air."

"Flash of light, searing pain, then, poof! You're nothing more than a pile of ash!" Bilbo's breathing got heavier, and just when he looked like he was going to be okay…

"Hmmmm…nope." …He fainted.

"Ah, very helpful Bofur." Said Gandalf.

"Are you ok, Miz Sanâzyung?" asked Fili, looking down at me. I gave him a confused look. "You look a little pale."

"Do I? Oh. Well, I'm fine. Just…dragons, you know?"

"Haha, yeah. It can do that to you." Soon, conversation started amongst the dwarves again as Gandalf made Bofur help him move Bilbo into this armchair.

Things just got a whole lot more interesting…

A/N: Yay! An update! Please remember to favourite and review!

Next chapter means the start of he journey!


	4. Chapter Four

Chapter Four

It'd been a few minutes since Bilbo had fainted in the middle of the hallway, and now he was sitting in his armchair holding a mug full of tea and looking very troubled. Honestly, he really was going for the brooding look tonight.

I, meanwhile, had remained in my seat nibbling of a piece of buttered bread (which was _very_ nice, in case you wanted to know) thinking about what had just been revealed. I mean, never in my life would I have thought that I would be involved in a quest to go slay a dragon or whatever it was they were going to do. Obviously dragons didn't exist in my world, so this was all a bit of a culture shock. Were dragons a common thing here? Was Smaug one of those nice dragons like in those cartoon films? Obviously not Amaya. What is this, A Very Potter Musical where you can just sing the dragon to sleep?

"Amaya." I looked up, shaking myself from my thoughts, and saw Thorin standing by the door.

"I'll be right back." I said to Fili and Kili. Hopping over various chairs and legs, I finally managed to reach Thorin. He led me to an empty room- I assumed it was the main living room as there was a sofa and a very warm looking fireplace. I sat down next to Thorin on the sofa and waited for him to speak.

"I'm not going to make you come with us." He started. "I will not lie, it will be a dangerous journey. But I am also not comfortable with leaving you here. Knowing you, you would probably burn down the Hobbit's house in a matter of minutes of us leaving you."

"Hey! I would no…" Thorin raised his eyebrows. "Okay, maybe you have a point. But if you think I'm not coming, you've got another thing coming. I just have one question."

"And what would that be?"

"What are we actually going to do?"

"We are going to reclaim our homeland."

"And I'm assuming that's the 'Erebor' you were talking about earlier?"

"Yes."

"Ah." We drifted off into a slightly awkward silence before Balin stepped into the room. "I'll just…walk over here…" I said, shuffling back into the kitchen. From the corner of my eye I saw Bilbo in a heated conversation with Gandalf before stalking out of the room towards the other end of his house.

"What did Uncle want to talk to you about?" asked Kili, once I had sat down again. Nosy, these dwarves, weren't they?

"Just…I don't know, making sure I knew what I was getting myself into, I guess. Making sure I wanted to go with you guys."

"And do you? You're not staying here, are you?" asked Fili. I furrowed my eyebrows. "I mean, because…what with the Hobbit coming and you not knowing anyone else, and…"

"Fili! It's okay, I'm coming. Relax." He grinned sheepishly. "So where is Erebor, then?"

"Far to the east. Across the misty mountains, through the forest of Mirkwood."

"So they'll be a lot of walking?"

"Probably." I groaned. Seriously? Walking? I hated walking. Running, swimming, cycling, I could live with. But I hated walking. "What's wrong? Upset about a little walking?" I smacked him.

-8-

We eventually all moved into the living room where I had been talking to Thorin. I was sat on the floor leaning against Fili's legs while the dwarves were sitting there smoking their pipes. Honestly, I did not find that pleasant in the least. I hated smoking at home, and I hated it here. At least these pipes didn't smell as bad as cigarettes.

I was actually wondering why they were all being so quiet (this seemed very unlikely for them!), before I heard the start of music and Thorin beginning to sing.

_Far over the misty mountains cold_

_To dungeons deep, and caverns old_

_We must away ere break of day_

_To seek the pale enchanted gold._

The other dwarves joined in.

_The dwarves of yore made mighty spells,_

_While hammers fell like ringing bells_

_In places deep, where dark things sleep,_

_In hollow halls beneath the fells._

_For ancient king and elvish lord,_

_There many a gleaming golden hoard_

_They shaped and wrought, and light they caught_

_To hide in gems on hilt of sword._

_On silver necklaces they strung_

_The flowering stars, on crowns they hung_

_The dragon-fire, in twisted wire_

_They meshed the light of moon and sun._

_Far over the misty mountains cold_

_To dungeons deep and caverns old_

_We must away, ere break of day,_

_To claim our long-forgotten gold._

_Goblets they carved there for themselves_

_And harps of gold; where no man delves_

_There lay they long, and many a song_

_Was sung unheard by men or elves_

_The pines were roaring on the height,_

_The winds were moaning in the night._

_The fire was red, it flaming spread;_

_The trees like torches blazed with light._

_The bells were ringing in the dale_

_And men looked up with faces pale;_

_Then dragon's ire more fierce than fire_

_Laid low their towers and houses frail. _

_The mountain smoked beneath the moon;_

_The dwarves, they heard the tramp of doom._

_They fled their hall to dying fall_

_Beneath his feet, beneath the moon._

_Far over the misty mountains grim_

_To dungeons deep and caverns dim_

_We must away, ere break of day,_

_To win our harps and gold from him!_

By the end of the song I was struggling to keep my eyes open. Not because it was boring. It's just I never would have thought that this bunch of dwarves would be able to sing a song so beautiful, with so much pain in their voices. It was at this moment that I truly appreciated how much this quest meant to them. How much suffering and pain them and their people had gone through.

With these thoughts in mind, I eventually drifted off to sleep, smiling as I almost didn't notice hands running through my hair brushing it back.

-8-

I woke the next morning feeling a lot warmer than I had when I had fallen asleep. There was only one problem. As much as I wanted to find out the reason, I could not be bothered to open my eyes. I had this problem most mornings. I loved sleeping in, and it was a very unfortunate thing that I barely ever got any lie-ins. I had a feeling this would become a more common occurrence over the next few months.

Deciding that I had better get up, (best to stay on the dwarves' good side) I opened my eyes to see that it was someone's coat that had been laid over me in the night. It looked like a nice coat. It had fur along the collar, and was certainly warm. Very warm, actually. Shrugging it off, I stood up and folded it across my arms. I looked around the room. Huh, empty. Guess they'd started breakfast without me. Bit rude.

Shuffling into the kitchen (it took me a while to completely wake up), I noticed that the dwarves were actually walking in and out of the hobbit hole, gathering various possessions and packing them in their bags.

"Ah!" came a voice to my left. "She awakens! I see you have my brother's coat."

"Kili!" I turned. "I…ur…I was just…"

"No need to explain." He smirked. "I gather that you're looking for my brother."

"Actually I was looking for breakfast." My stomach, with excellent timing, decided to rumble very loudly.

"Here ya go, lass." Said Bombur, passing me a plate full of bacon, eggs and bread. I guess he was the cook in the company. Where he found this food was a mystery to me. I'd seen Bilbo's cupboards last night, and they looked pretty empty to me. Not that I was complaining that there was more food.

"So where's Bilbo?" I asked through a mouthful of food. "I haven't seen him around."

"Still sleeping, I presume." Replied Kili, who was attempting to take a piece of my bacon from my plate.

"So he's not coming?" I swatted his hand away. I have to say, I would be quite disappointed if Bilbo didn't come. Like me, he probably didn't know how to fight, and it would be nice to talk to him about more leisurely things on the journey.

"It doesn't look like it. But you never know."

"Mmm." Finishing my food, I put the plate in the sink and wandered around to the front of the house where various ponies were now waiting. "Bofur!" I shouted, hurrying over to where the dwarf was attaching various bags to a pony. "Have you seen Fili?"

"Well, he was over there a few minutes ago with Thorin, but I'm not sure about now."

"Right…" Now I was at a bit of a loss.

"How about I introduce you to the ponies?" I spent the next few minutes being introduced to the ponies that we were going to ride, which I wasn't thrilled about. I didn't dislike horses or ponies per say, but I wasn't overly fond of them either.

"Amaya!" I heard a voice say from behind. I turned around to see Fili walking over. How did he look so good this early in the morning? "I was wondering where you'd gone. Still got my coat, I see."

I blushed. "Oh! Well, uh…yeah. Uh, here." I stammered, holding it out. Fili laughed and folded it over his arm. "Thanks for…uh…letting me use it. It's very warm."

"It's my pleasure. Anyway, we're leaving in a few minutes. Have you got all of your things?"

I pretended to think for a while. "Well considering I'm currently wearing all of my things, I'd say so." Damn, that bummed me out. I was literally broke.

"Oh! That reminds me, Thorin thinks that it'd be best if you wore something a bit different. Your current attire isn't really suitable for long distance travelling." It was true. I doubted my jeans would be comfy in a few hours when I'd been on a pony for hours on end, and my vest top wasn't very weather resistant to say the least. And I was fairly certain that my clothes would be very strange here. I'm surprised that none of the dwarves had asked me about it to be honest. Only one problem…

"I don't have anything else to wear."

"I figured that, so I found some spare clothes of mine. What I don't have, I found from the others. They'll have to do for now."

"Thanks." Giving him a quick grin, I ran into the bathroom to change. I found that Fili had gathered a tunic, a pair of trousers, a belt which I had to position so it held up my trousers and gave me some sort of shape under my tunic (I was still a female, I wanted to attempt to look like one), and a pair of boots that were a bit big for me. I put all of my old clothes in a bag; I wasn't prepared to let go of the only things I had of my world just yet. Quickly putting my hair in a fishtail braid with the band on my wrist, I returned back outside and saw that all of the others were already outside waiting beside their ponies.

"Ready lass?" asked Bofur. "We're about set to go."

"Yep!" I replied, determined to at least start the journey in a good mood. I looked around again. It seemed like Bilbo wasn't coming. Now which pony was mine…

"Amaya." Came a voice to my left. "You'll be riding with me." I looked up to see Fili sitting on top of the pony. "If that's okay, of course. I mean, you could join someone else, or…"

"Fili! It's fine." He gave what looked like a relieved smile, and held out a hand to help me up. I jumped up to sit in front of him on the pony, and soon we were off. We sat for a while, Fili holding the reigns around me while I looked around at the scenery. It was a fairly relaxing start to the journey although, around two hours into it, I felt him rummaging around behind me, and something being draped around my shoulders. I peered around to see a cloak- _ahem_, Fili's cloak might I add- around me. "Fili, this is your cloak."

He laughed. "Well done. You're very observational. But don't worry, miz sanâzyung. It's my spare. I noticed you getting a bit chilly. That tunic isn't very warm."

"Huh. Well, thanks." I blushed. Seriously, I really needed to stop blushing around this guy. At least I had my face turned forward so he couldn't see. However, Kili did, and he was currently wiggling his eyebrows and smirking. God, help me.

A/N: okay, so I've actually had this written for a while, but my laptop broke, and I had no way of posting it, so…sorry for the wait!

But, more Fili/Amaya fluff coming up, so yay!

Please favourite and review!


	5. Chapter Five

Chapter Five

**Obi-wan's girl forever-** glad you're enjoying the story! And no, I haven't uploaded a story with Amaya before :)

Thanks to everyone else who's enjoying the story, and thanks for **Marina Oakenshield, xSiriuslyPadfoot** and **aireagle92** for reviewing!

-8-

"So there aren't any dwarves in your world?" asked Ori, scribbling in his notebook. I sighed. For the past half an hour I'd been bombarded with questions from the dwarves about where I was from. I'd tried to explain, with much difficulty that I was from a world that was completely different to here, and I hadn't even begun to talk about the technology yet. I'd have to explain about electricity and all that first to allow them to even begin to understand what I was talking about, and I was trying to save that for a day when I was more awake.

"No." I replied, leaning back subconsciously onto Fili. "We only have humans…urm…the race of Man, I guess you'd call it here, or whatever. No Elves, dwarves, dragons…none of them are real. Although, we do have a lot of fairytales and stories about them. The Elves and the Shoemaker…Snow White and the Seven Dwarves…"

"Snow White and the Seven Dwarves?!" cried several of the dwarves, seeming aghast at the idea. "What is that ab…" But Dwalin was cut off by a faint voice shouting,

"Wait! Wait!" I smiled. It seemed Bilbo had come, and Fili and Kili had won the bet that had been made about an hour ago on whether he was going to turn up. Considering the fact that I had none of my own possessions, I certainly had no money to bet with, and had no ambitions to be in debt to anyone more than necessary. Fili and Kili had offered me a bit of gold for it, but I was already in debt to them with the clothes they'd lent me; I refused to be in any more. The company slowed their ponies to a stop. "I signed it!"

Bilbo had finally managed to catch up, and was handing over the contract to Balin who inspected it with a pocket-glass.

"Everything appears to be in order." He said, smiling at the Hobbit. "Welcome, Master Baggins, to the company of Thorin Oakenshield." I gave him an encouraging smile.

"Give him a pony." Commanded Thorin, who unlike the others, was not smiling. In fact, he didn't look pleased at all as he turned his pony and prepared to ride on.

"No, no, no, no, that-that won't be necessary." Stuttered Bilbo. "Thank you, but I…I'm sure I can keep up on foot. I…I…I've done my fair share of walking holidays, you know. I even got as far as Frogmorton once…wagh!" Through all of Bilbo's rambling, Bilbo had failed to notice Fili and Kili ride behind him and pull him up onto the spare pony, and it was safe to say that he looked highly uncomfortable on it.

"Cheer up Bilbo. It gets better. Just give it a few days, and you'll love it!" I said, not believing a word I said. He didn't turn to look at me. In fact, he gave a huge sigh and slumped as low as he could go without falling before realizing that got him closer to the pony where he sat up as straight as he could go.

"Amaya." Said Fili, in my ear. (I won't deny, this gave me shivers…) "I'd duck if I were you." I gave him a confused look before doing as he said. A moment later, a sack of money was thrown over my head and into Fili's hands. "Ok, it's fine now." I smiled, and sat up.

"What's that about?" asked Bilbo to Gandalf, who looked like he was thoroughly enjoying the Hobbit's confusion.

"Oh, they took wagers on whether or not you'd turn up. Most of them bet that you wouldn't."

"What did you think?"

"Hmmm?" Replied Gandalf, before a sack of money flew his way. "My dear fellow, I never doubted you for a second."

Bilbo's reply, however, was interrupted by him sneezing. "Ohh. All this horse hair, I'm having a reaction." He felt frantically in his pockets. "No, no, wait, wait, stop! Stop! We have to turn around!"

I looked at him, confused. What could he have forgotten?

"What on earth is the matter?" asked Gandalf.

"I forgot my handkerchief." I rolled my eyes. Honestly, he needed to sort out his priorities.

"Here!" shouted Bofur, tearing a strip of cloth from his clothing. "Use this." From the disgusted look on Bilbo's face, it was obvious he was not amused. The dwarves however, were laughing as Thorin gave the command to move on.

"You'll have to manage without pocket-handkerchiefs and a good many other things, Bilbo Baggins, before we reach our journey's end. You were born to the rolling hills and little rivers of the Shire, but home is now behind you; the world is ahead." Said Gandalf.

"Miss Amaya." Came a voice to my left. I turned to see Ori looking at my with a very timid look on his face. "You never told us that story." I groaned. Something told me they would not like it one bit.

-8-

"How could you listen to stories like that!?" cried Dwalin. I'd just finished telling the company the story, and it was safe to say they were not amused.

"It's not my fault!" I shot back. "Besides, where I'm from, they're not at all offensive to anyone. It's not like dwarves exist, as I kept trying to remind you every time you interrupted me with a complaint!"

"Well there was a lot to complain about! Honestly, a dwarf called Grumpy…"

"Well it definitely suits you at the moment…" I muttered back. I heard Fili chuckle behind me.

"Well, it was a pretty bad story." He defended when I turned to look at him.

"It's not my job to tell stories, though! I normally listen to people, not talk to them. That's why I wanted to be a psychiatrist. I get socially awkward. And you did ask to hear it."

"Uh huh." I glared before facing forward again. The company carried on in silence for the next few minutes. It was getting towards noon, and we stopped briefly to have a bit of lunch (Which was quite disappointing after the food we'd had at Bilbo's) before setting off again.

After riding for a few more hours, I began to grow bored. Sure, this place was beautiful with the trees, and the hills and, well…the entire scenery really. But there is only so much you can take before it all starts to look the same. Add that to the fact that my bum and my thighs were beginning to hurt, and I was definitely not looking forward to riding a pony every day.

"I miss my iPod." I sighed. To be honest, sitting in silence was never something I ever did. I always had some form of music on in the background.

"What's that?" asked Kili, who was riding beside us.

"It's like…a small machine that plays music. I used to take it everywhere with me. It's weird to not have it." I explained.

"Don't you sing your own songs then? Make your own music?"

"Trust me, you wouldn't want to hear me sing. I sound awful."

"You can't be that bad." Said Fili.

"Oh, I am. And I won't prove it, you wouldn't want me to."

"If you insist." Laughed Fili. "So, Amaya, why don't you tell us more about where you're from?"

"Oh, well, as I've already told you, I'm from York. It's quite a big city, quite old. I mean, I've lived there all my life, so it's kind of boring; I've been everywhere. I was hoping that after I finished my degree I could leave, but that wasn't going to be for another year, so…"

"How long do these 'degrees' take?" asked Bilbo, who had joined us. He seemed quite interested to learn about different people's cultures and things like that. It make a difference from depressed Bilbo that had been present for most of what I'd seen.

"It varies depending on what degree your doing. There's thousand to choose from. Mine only took three years, so I would have been graduated…uh, finished it, by the time I was twenty." I saw the dwarves freeze on their ponies.

"Lass." Said Bofur, slowly. "How old are you, exactly?"

"Don't you know that you should never ask a woman her age?" I joked. "But if you must know, I'm nineteen. My birthday was a couple of months ago. Why? Why do you all look so shocked? Some of you can't be much older! Kili only looks a few years older than me!"

"Amaya, I'm 77." Said Kili. "I had to convince Uncle to let me come along. I'm considered young by many. Gloin's son Gimli was even considered too young to come, and he's quite a number of years older than you." I gaped at him. No way was Kili 77 years old. He looked barely older than 26 at the most.

"But…" I turned around to face Fili. "You're older then, right? I mean, you're the older brother?" He nodded. "So how old are you?"

"I'm 82." He replied. 82. Fili was 82. Great, I was crushing on an old man.

"Okay. Right. So, if you're 82, and I'm guessing that's still young, right?" He nodded again. "So how long do dwarves live, then?"

"Around 250 years." I gaped. Obviously I had a lot to learn.

"So I must be like, a child to all of you. But! Before you say anything, I just want to say that I'm an adult in my world. I have been for over a year, so don't treat me any differently, please." Some of the dwarves turned back around after this to carry on their previous conversations, looking a bit unsettled at this new bit of information.

"Amaya?"

"Yes Fili?"

"Can I ask a question?"

"You just did, but sure, ask another one."

"Right, well, how long do people from your world generally live to? It's just, you seemed so shocked we lived so long, I just wondered…"

"Life expectancy where I come from is normally around 80 years old." Fili's face dropped. "What is it?"

"Nothing, it's just…80 years old isn't…that's young to us I guess…"

"Yeah, well. I've changed since I've come here. So, it might not be the same. I'll have to ask Gandalf about it, see if he knows." That seemed to cheer Fili up a little.

"Really? How have you changed?"

"Not by much. All I've seemed to have done is shrink a couple of feet, and I have no idea why."

"Well, if it's any consolation, I think it's a much better height."

-8-

After several more hours of riding, through which Fili had told me many embarrassing stories about Kili's younger days (Kili had assured me he would get his brother back sooner or later) which made the afternoon pass rather quickly. Eventually, the sun began to set, and Thorin had to admit that they make camp for the night. Bombur's stomach was beginning to rumble so loudly that we could hear it near the back of the company.

We ended up on the edge of a cliff (I was quite pleased at this point that I was ok with heights), and the dwarves wasted no time in starting a fire and getting Bombur to cook a stew with some meat that Kili had caught earlier while riding.

"Can I help at all?" I asked Bombur, once he started getting out a big enough pan. I didn't want to become a burden. I would have to ask for some training with a sword, or at least the basics on how to fight, sooner rather than later. I wasn't keen on dying in the first spot of danger.

"Aye lass, if you're offering. You can chop these vegetables and put them in the pot when you're done." I set to work chopping the potatoes and carrots I'd been given, thinking that I better not get used to this, and that the food would probably run out sooner or later. I'd seen enough movies to know that that kind of thing always happens on long and possibly dangerous journeys.

Finally, after I'd cut enough (and there was quite a few, I'll you tell you that now), Bombur told me that I could leave and he would do the rest. Smiling, I stood up and looked around. Dwalin, Balin and Thorin were on one side of the camp talking about something that looked serious, Gandalf was leaning against the wall with his eyes closed smoking his pipe, Bilbo was sitting looking quite depressed, and Bofur was telling everyone else a funny story that had them all laughing.

At the opposite end of the camp, I saw Fili and Kili. It seemed like Kili was talking to Fili about something that was making him uncomfortable, as he kept shaking his head and looking down. Thinking that I should leave them to it, I walked over to a spot on the side of the cliff, and leant against the wall closing my eyes.

"Miss Amaya." I looked up to see Bombur holding out a bowl of stew.

"Thanks, Bombur."

-8-

I hadn't moved from my place near the cliff except to give my bowl to Bombur for washing up and packing. Now I was on my own, I'd finally had a proper chance to think. Was it really only about two days ago that I was sat at home with my roommate watching TV? What would happen now that I was gone? Would I be classed as missing? Or would they think I was dead? I didn't have any family to worry about that would care, but I did have a few friends, and it was only now sinking in that I would probably never see them again. I would never finish my degree, or set up my own psychology clinic like I always wanted to do.

Very faintly, I heard a scream in the distance.

"What was that?" asked Bilbo.

"Orcs." Replied Kili, who was on watch along with his brother.

"Orcs?"

"Throat-cutters." Explained Fili. "There'll be dozens of them out there. The lowlands are crawling with them."

"They strike in the wee small hours, when everyone's asleep." Continued Kili. "Quick and quiet; no screams, just lots of blood." I heard them snigger before Thorin cutting in.

"You think that's funny? You think a night raid by orcs is a joke?"

"We didn't mean anything by it."

"No, you didn't. You know nothing of the world."

Not really listening to what was going on, and more caught up in my own thoughts, I wasn't aware that I was crying until Fili was crouching down in front of me.

"Amaya. Amaya, hey. Come on, it's ok. We were just joking, okay? And you know I'd protect you anyway, right?" Focusing on his face, I gave him a smile.

"It's fine. It's not your fault. I was just, I don't know, thinking. And I know that."

"Thinking about what?"

"Life. My life before this. How I'm probably never going to go back. All the things I'm going to miss. All the little things. It's stupid, just ignore me."

"Hey, listen to me. It's not stupid. You miss it, and it's finally sinking in, the shock of it all. Coming here. But it will get better." He rubbed his thumbs over my cheeks, wiping my tears away.

"Yeah, I know. You should never leave me alone with my own thoughts. It never results in anything good." I grinned.

Fili grinned back. "I'll keep that in mind. Now, come on. Me and Kili still have watch for another couple of hours, but we have a spare pack you can use to sleep. It'd be better if you slept nearer to someone; you still need training."

Lying down on the pack Fili had leant me, already falling asleep, I asked, "Will you train me?"

I heard him chuckle. "If you want me to."

-8-

A/N: okay! Not the best ending to a chapter ever, and it's taken me AGES to update, but here it is!

Please favourite and review!


	6. Chapter Six

Chapter Six

The next morning, I was woken up by someone shaking my shoulders. "Amaya. Amaya, come on. You need to get up." Cracking my eyes open, I saw Kili standing over me.

"Urgh…fine. Seriously though, what is it with you lot and waking up at the crack of dawn?"

"Uncle likes to cover a lot of ground in a day. The sooner we set off, the further we travel and the sooner we get there."

"Yeah, well…doesn't mean I'm happy about it." Kili chuckled. "Is there any breakfast?"

"I saved you some. We're just packing up. I'd hurry if I were you." Nodding, and taking the food I'd been given, I quickly tidied up my pack and put it back in Fili's bag that he'd left to the side.

"You ready to go?" asked Fili, who'd come to get his bag. I nodded. "You'll be riding with me again, if that's okay. I mean, you can go with someone else if you prefer, but I thought that…"

"It's fine." I interrupted. Honestly, he stuttered more than the entire company put together. "I like riding with you." Oh God, I hadn't phrased that well. Thankfully he hadn't noticed and was busy grinning. Daft dwarf.

"And what are we talking about over here?" asked Kili, sauntering up.

"Nothing." Replied Fili.

"Oh really? And that's why you were smiling so much? May I remind you on the conversation we had last night?"

"Kili, I said that was nothing, just leave it."

"Fine, fine." He held his hands up in surrender and walked back towards his pony.

"What was that about?" I asked.

"Like I said, nothing. Come on, Uncle's motioning us to go." We made our way over to his pony and he helped me up. (Honestly, it was only a pony and once upon a time it would have been easy to climb up on. This just seemed like a constant painful reminder of the fact that I had shrunk)

For the first half an hour or so, I was content to just sit on the pony looking at the scenery. But again, I'd forgotten just how boring that this got, and decided to learn more about dwarves, as it turns out from yesterday's conversation I didn't know much about them.

"Fili."

"Mmm."

"Can I ask a question?" I asked, mimicking him for yesterday.

"Of course."

"What's with all the braids. You know, because you all have them in your hair and beards and all that." I turned around and gestured to his braided moustache. "I just wondered, but…I mean…you don't have to tell me if it's like a personal or private thing…"

"It's fine, don't worry." He chuckled. "Dwarven braids are quite important to us. Each one generally has a different meaning. For example, these two," he gestured to two braids on either side of his face with a free hand, "mean that I am from the line of Durin. You can see the clasp at the end that has Durin's mark on it. But these other two," he again gestured to two other braids near the first ones on either side of his face, "signify that I am the heir of Durin after Thorin."

"Wait." I interrupted. "What do you mean the 'heir?'" I looked up at him with a thoroughly confused face.

"Uncle didn't tell you? He's the rightful heir to the throne of Erebor. The rightful king." I continued to look at him with a now blank expression. "Amaya? Amaya, come on, say something."

"So…" I cleared my throat. "That would make you like…a prince?" Fili gave me a sheepish smile. "I don't have to start calling you Your Highness, do I?"

"No! Please don't. I don't want you to treat me any differently than you do now, okay?" I nodded, smiling, although it was a bit surreal. I was riding on a pony with a _prince_. Like, a real prince. I thought these things only happened in Disney movies. "But I really thought you knew."

"Well now I do! But anyway, what about these two?" I flicked his moustache braids, making him twitch his mouth.

"They don't particularly mean anything. And it keeps the hair out of the way. Some dwarves have braids that are just for decoration."

"So you like these?"

"Yes, I do. Why? Don't you?"

"No! I do like them! They're great. A bit distracting though."

"Distracting?" he laughed. "How are they distracting?"

"I don't know! Like, they just kind of…move…when you talk, I guess, like…" I reached forward and flicked the braids so they swayed. "…that."

"Okay, I see your point. And may I just say, you are weirder than usual when you're tired."

"I'm not weird at all, how dare you say such a thing!" I grinned.

"Okay, okay! Not weird." He cleared his throat.

"Are there anything else about braids I should know?"

"Well, as I said, they're very important to us. To braid another dwarf's hair, or even to touch it is a sign of immense trust. Only family and partners are permitted to do this."

"Oh my God." I thought back to when I'd flicked his moustache. (Seriously, why had I even done that) "I'm sorry! I didn't know that…I shouldn't have…"

"Hey. Don't worry about it. I don't mind. And like you said, you didn't know. Anyway, are there any traditions where you come from?"

"Traditions? Urm…well, not really. I mean, I suppose it's customary for most women to have their ears pierced when they're younger, some people get tattoos when they're eighteen…"

"Ears pierced?" He sounded revolted.

"Yeah, I have mine done. See." I moved my hair behind my ears and turned so he could see. Luckily, before I'd come here, I'd picked a day to wear studs (small golden flowers with a clear jewel in the middle that I was particularly fond of) so they were able to stay in my ears and out of the way.

"Why would you do that? That's got to hurt."

I shrugged. "It's normal where I come from. It only really hurts for the first few minutes when you have it done, and it's quite quick. You keep the earrings in for six weeks, and then it's safe to take them out so your ears don't heal up to fast. But you've got to put them in every once in a while otherwise the hole heals up and you have to have them re-pierced."

"It's strange, and no offense, a little disgusting." I shrugged in response.

-8-

After stopping for a quick bit of lunch, we set off again. Unfortunately, in the time it had taken to stop and eat, some very dark clouds had rolled in, and were now causing it to rain. A lot. This was causing me to shiver an awful lot, and I had to literally bury myself in Fili's chest to avoid most of the wind. Not that I was complaining about that, at all. In fact, Fili had taken to putting his hood up and leaning his chin on the top of my head which shielded me more from behind and stopped me shivering as much as I would have been doing. I never saw him smiling.

"Here, Mr. Gandalf." Shouted Dori, over the wind. "Can't you do something about this deluge?"

"It is raining, Master Dwarf." Came the reply. "And it will continue to rain until the rain is done. If you wish to change the weather of the world, you should find yourself another wizard."

"Are there any?" asked Bilbo.

"What?"

"Other wizards?"

"There are five of us. The greatest of our order is Saruman, the White. Then there are the two Blue Wizards; you know, I've quite forgotten their names."

"And who is the fifth?"

"Well, that would be Radagast, the Brown."

"Is he a great Wizard, or is he…more like you?"

I saw Gandalf look slightly offended. Not that I could blame him. "I think he's a very great wizard, in his own way. He's a gentle soul who prefers the company of animals to others. He keeps a watchful eye over the vast forest lands to the East, and a good thing too, for always evil will look to find a foothold in this world."

-8-

We stopped again that night in a small clearing that was off to the side of the road we were travelling on.

"Amaya." I turned to see Fili. "Would you like me to hang your cloak up to dry? It's wet through; you'll catch a cold."

"Oh, yeah. Thanks!" Giving him a smile, I peeled my cloak off (it was literally stuck to my shirt underneath) and gave it to him.

"You're welcome. And I was wondering, would you like to start training tonight? I just thought, the sooner the better." If I knew any better, I would say he looked almost nervous.

"That would be good. But I need to talk to Gandalf first, if that's okay?"

"Sure, just come over when you're finished." Nodding, I headed over to the other side of the camp where Gandalf was sat, once again, smoking his pipe. He seemed to do that a lot. Clearing my thoughts, I walked over to him and cleared my throat. Gandalf opened one eye and gave me an inquisitive look.

"How can I help you, my dear?"

"Well, I was just wondering…you know, because you know quite a lot, right?" He raised an eyebrow. "I'll take that as a yes. Anyway, do you know…urm, do you know why I'm here? Like, why I was brought here? Or by who, or whatever?"

"Why you're here? Yes, I've been meaning to speak to you about that. No, I don't know why you're here. And as for who, I can only think it was an action of the Valar, for you to come here and help on this quest as you were meant to. This is just a theory of course, I doubt anyone will know for sure, other than some other people who are currently in other places."

"Oh." I looked down. "Is that why I've shrunk then? For it to be easier around the dwarves and stuff? To fit in?"

"I'd say so, yes." Gandalf shut his eyes again, and I figured that the conversation had ended.

"Amaya." I heard someone say behind me. Blimey, I was popular today. Turning around, I saw Thorin. "May I have a word with you?"

"Sure." I followed Thorin away from Gandalf, where he gestured me to sit.

"How are you faring?"

"Oh!" That was unexpected. "Well, I'm doing okay, I guess. The whole travelling in the wilderness is kind of new, but I'm okay, I went camping with my friends a few times in the past. Fili's going to train me so I can at least defend myself, so that's good."

"Good. I was just checking. I do feel responsible for you, you know." Thorin was now beginning to look quite uncomfortable, and I was gathering chats like this were quite out of character. "With you coming with us, I mean. I brought you along. And…you are beginning to grow on me."

"It's fine. And everyone's being really nice. You watch, we'll be at Erebor in no time. And I grow on everyone. It must be my great sense of humour and charm." I smiled.

"Indeed." He cracked a smile. "Anyway, I need to go and talk to Balin. And I believe Fili would like to speak with you." I could have sworn I'd seen him wink. "I will speak to you later." As Thorin walked away, I could only sit there with my mouth open. What was that? Sighing, I heaved myself up, thanked Bombur for a bowl of stew (again) and walked over to where the brothers were sitting.

"And just what were you talking to Uncle about, may I ask?" asked Kili.

"You may not." I retorted, kneeling down on the floor in front of them.

"Why not?!"

"I will tell you when you tell me what you and Fili were talking about last night." I smirked. I saw from the corner of my eye Fili's eye widen. Seriously, what had they talked about?

"Ah, no can do, Blondie. I am sworn to secrecy." I scowled, and ate a spoonful of stew.

"Very well. But mark my words, I. Will. Find. Out. And don't call me Blondie."

"Good luck with that. And no, I think I've found my new nickname for you." He snorted. As the conversation drifted out, I looked around camp and saw Bilbo sitting on his own near the ponies.

"I'll be right back." I said, getting up, and putting my bowl on the floor. "Make sure nobody touches my food." I paused. "Actually, on second thought…" I bent down and picked it up again. "…I don't trust you two."

"You have wounded me, Blondie!" exclaimed Kili, putting his hand on his chest.

"Whatever." I walked towards Bilbo and stopped just in front of him. "Hey, Bilbo." Bilbo looked up, appearing quite shocked that I was talking to him. "Do you want to come and sit with us? You look lonely, and I know that's not a good feeling."

"What? Oh,no…no, it's fine. They wouldn't want me to…I mean, I'm not sure if…"

"Well, I'm here, and I want to talk to you, so come on." Giving him a playful stern look, he sighed and followed me back over to Fili and Kili. "Now sit."

We ate in silence for a few minutes before Kili (who couldn't sit in silence for more than two minutes) broke it. "So, Bilbo, how are you faring?"

"Oh! Well, uh…it's certainly a new experience." I could tell that he was picking his words carefully. "I only wish that I'd brought a few of my books with me. I have this book, one of my favourites actually, and it has a brief history of many kingdoms around Middle Earth…" I drifted away from what Bilbo was saying(glad he was feeling more comfortable) to look at Fili. Honestly, that dwarf had my attention most of the time, and it confused me to a point. I mean, obviously I was around him for most of the day; he was probably who I talked to the most out of everyone, but it scared me of some of the things that I thought. Especially since I'd known him for all of three days. And it definitely didn't help that he was good-looking. Quite possibly one of the most good-looking people I'd seen, in my opinion. The way around his eyes crinkled when he smiled, or how he laughed when I told a joke that wasn't even remotely funny. Damn, Amaya, when did you get so soppy?

"Amaya." A voice shook me out of my thoughts. "You okay?" My cheeks must have been a dark shade of red when my eyes focused to see Fili staring at me, his cheeks blushing as well. Embarrassed that I'd been caught staring, however unintentional, I quickly looked down and cleared my throat.

"Sorry, I er…I was just thinking."

"It's fine. What were you thinking about? What you were thinking about last night? Do you want to talk about it?"

"No, nothing like that, don't worry. I wasn't thinking about anything in particular. It was more daydreaming, I guess."

"Ah."

"…and there is an exquisite map of the Shire that I have produced myself that I am particularly fond of…" continued Bilbo.

"Would you like to start training now?" asked Fili, noticing my blank look as I refocused on Bilbo speaking. Honestly, I was glad he was beginning to feel included, but it would be a lot better if he spoke about something a little more interesting.

"Yeah, yeah, that would be good…" I replied, now a little nervous.

"Alright, come on." We moved towards the edge of the clearing away from everyone else. "We'll do it here. I figured you didn't want to do it in front of everyone just yet." I nodded. "Okay, we'll be training with a sword today, just the basics so you'll be able to remember it all." I nodded again. "Right, now, hold this; your right hand on top, that's right. Okay, now, you need to keep your feet apart, balance your weight on your back foot." I focused on doing this. "No, your grip is too tight, you need to relax. If your grip is too tight, you won't be able to maneuver the sword very well. Good." He walked back over to his pack and pulled out another sword. "Now I want you to swing at me."

"Wait, what?"

"Swing at me. Try and knock me down."

"But I can't do that!"

"Why not?"

"Because what if I…I don't know…"

"You're not going to hurt me. Remember that. I am able to defend myself against any move you may make, no matter how wild."

"Hey!"

"Now come on. Attack me!" Growling under my breath, I leapt forward, trying to swing at Fili, but he cut his sword across mine, making a mighty _clang_. "You're too tense. Relax. Take a few breaths." Okay, okay, untensing…relaxing… "Now try again." I swung my sword at him again, this time able to rotate it at a better angle to try and catch him off guard. Not that I had any luck. Honestly, my technique was probably more swing my sword in random directions and hope it catches them off guard and distracts them so I can run away, but obviously I couldn't do that with Fili, and he would just keep making me repeat it until I got it right.

After about twenty more attempts to try and knock Fili down, my sword flew out of my hand. "You're getting better. Definitely a lot better than you were. What are you doing?"

While he'd been talking, I'd lowered myself to the ground and was lying flat on my back, breathing heavily.

"I'm tired. I'm not exactly unfit, but I haven't used half of those muscles I've used tonight in years…I am going to be sore in the morning…" Fili laughed.

"I was the same when I first started training. It takes a few weeks, you just have to keep at it. We can ask Kili if he can help you with a bow if you like? So you're not sore every evening."

"Are you mocking me, Fili?"

"I wouldn't dream of it!" There it was, that grin. That huge, lopsided grin that could probably make me smile at any time of the day.

"Well, uh, archery sounds good. Probably a lot more fun." I laughed and ran away towards Kili as I heard Fili huff. I sat down again near where we'd eaten, pulling out my pack from Fili's bag so I could lie down and get to sleep.

"You know, that wasn't a very nice thing to say, miz sanâzyung." Breathed Fili in my ear as he passed me by.

"I'd say I was sorry, but I'm not."

"You will be by the time he's finished training you." Piped up Kili. "He helped me with my swordsmanship whenever Uncle or Dwalin wasn't around. I don't think I've ever been so sore."

I looked at Fili with wide eyes. "So I'd be a little nicer if I were you." Smirked Fili.

Great. I knew I should have asked Thorin to train me…

-8-

A/N: alright, chapter six done! I hope it's okay, I'm trying to add in a lot more extra stuff as the journey is quite a long one and there's a lot more that happens than just in the films and book, just day to day conversations.

And I'd also like to point out that I am no sword expert. I have no idea how to train with a sword so any training or fighting is purely what I think would happen.

As always, please remember to favourite and review!


	7. Chapter Seven

Chapter Seven

For the next week or so, we continued on with the same schedule. We'd wake up at the crack of dawn (something I still wasn't used to), ride until lunch, eat, ride for most of the afternoon and then stop to make camp for the night where we ate and I would train with Fili. Sometimes some of the other company decided to train as well, but Fili and I always went somewhere away from the others; he knew that I preferred privacy with my training until I got better.

And I was getting better. I was beginning to become a bit more of a match to Fili (although I had my suspicions that sometimes he was going easy on me and not telling me), and I was even progressing with archery on the occasion that Kili helped me. I was able to hit within the vicinity that I was supposed to be shooting at. I was beginning to think that, if it ever came to a fight, I would have a small chance at being able to defend myself. Of course I was still pretty crap compared to everyone else, but Fili was insisting that I was doing very well, and it wouldn't be long until the basics became instinct and we could move on to different things.

We spent most of the day discussing various things from where I came from and vice versa. I'd explained, with much difficulty, the concept of electricity, cars and other vehicles such as aeroplanes and even rockets. The company seemed absolutely fascinated that people had actually gone into space; I'd spent at least three hours trying to explain that the reason it took so long to do it with all the advanced technology in my world was due to the fact that there was no air in space.

On the morning of the sixteenth day of travelling, I was awoken in much the same respect as every other previous morning: being shook on the shoulder with a dwarf saying it's time to get up and leaving my breakfast to the side. I was looked after fairly well by the dwarves. It seemed learning my age resulted in them feeling it was their responsibility to make sure that I was okay. Not that I was complaining, I was just hoping that it wouldn't get too annoying.

Thanking Bofur (Who had awoken me this morning and someone who I was quite close to. I spoke to him often on a night when he joined me and the brothers to eat), I sat up and stretched. I was beginning to feel used to sleeping on the floor, and had a feeling that when I finally slept in a bed again, it would feel quite weird. Quickly eating my breakfast, I ran my fingers through my hair, wincing when I felt a huge knot. Lord only knows what I looked like. I barely got a chance to wash as the others weren't particularly bothered (and bathing in the middle of the forest wasn't an appealing thought), and obviously I had no hairbrush, so I resulted into dragging my fingers through my hair every once in a while before putting it in a pony tail for the day.

Giving up on untangling my hair, I sighed and packed away my things before heading over to Fili's pony, on top of which, Fili was already sat. Pulling myself up, I wriggled around to get myself comfy.

"Would you like me to help you with that?" asked Fili from behind in my ear. He did this a lot, and I never got used to the feeling I got in my stomach when he did it.

"Hmmmm? With that?"

"Your hair. I noticed you trying to brush through it earlier; it's full of knots and dwarves are quite good with hair if you haven't noticed from everyone's around here."

"It's not that noticeable, is it?" My hand flew up to my hair. Normally I was never too bothered about my appearance, so I wasn't sure why I was now. Maybe it was the fact that I probably looked like crap whereas the dwarf sitting behind me looked the same as he did the night I met him. i.e. Utterly gorgeous.

"No, no. Well, it doesn't look that bad if that's what you mean. I just saw you becoming frustrated over there, that's all."

"Oh, ok. Well, that would be good, thanks. I'm just not used to being so filthy." I grimaced.

"You're not filthy. You just smell a little." Scoffing, I span around and flicked him on the nose.

"I don't smell!"

"Of course you don't. And did you really just flick me?" He chuckled as I stuck my tongue out at him and we set off. "Do you want me to do your hair?"

"Yeah! That would be great, thanks."

"Ok. Could you take the reins? You know what to do, right?"

"Just hold them and make sure the pony doesn't run off. I got this. I've watched you do it for weeks."

"Right, sure." Taking the reins, I felt Fili's hands move to my hair and begin untangling the knots in a way that I would never be able to do. His fingers wove through my hair as if there were no knots at all, and after about half an hour of us sitting in silence while he worked, he spoke up. "Done. Try not to let it get that bad next time. It was rather messy." He smiled.

"How did you do that?" I asked, running my hands through my now smooth hair.

"I told you, dwarves are good with their hands." Blushing at the way he'd phrased it (my dirty mind coming into play here), I nodded my head.

"Well, thanks. It feels a lot better." Handing the reigns back to Fili, I set to work putting my hair back in a basic plait to keep it neat, the task being a lot easier now.

-8-

The rest of the day went by fairly uneventful. Kili had finally got Fili back for all the stories he'd told me about by pushing him off of this pony twice (Thorin was not amused, although it did make Bilbo crack a smile and me nearly fall off with him), and telling me some of his own embarrassing stories he remembered about Fili's childhood. By the end of it, I turned to see Fili's face a very deep shade of red glaring daggers at his brother who had ridden further away to avoid being hit.

"Awww. Fili, don't be so embarrassed. We all have embarrassing stories." I cooed.

"Do we? So you wouldn't say no to telling us some of yours?"

"What? No! No…no one here knows mine, and I know better than to tell you." I lowered my voice so Kili wouldn't here. "Maybe later." I heard him laugh.

-8-

As it got towards evening, Thorin led the company towards what looked to me like an abandoned farmhouse.

"We'll camp here for the night. Fili, Kili, look after the ponies. Make sure you stay with them." Fili nodded as we slid off of the pony.

"A farmer and his family used to live here." Commented Gandalf, frowning. I bit my lip. If Gandalf was worried, then this was not good.

"Oin, Gloin." Continued Thorin, ignoring Gandalf.

"Aye?"

"Get a fire going."

"Right you are."

"I think it would be wiser to move on." I watched Fili and Kili guide the ponies into the trees on the edge of the clearing. "We could make for the Hidden Valley." Urged Gandalf.

"I have told you already." Growled Thorin. "I will not go near that place."

"Why not? The elves could help us. We could get food, rest, advice." Elves? I could meet elves? I've never seen elves before, it would be kind of cool.

"I do not need their advice."

"We have a map that we cannot read. Lord Elrond could help us." Ooo. And now there was a 'Lord'. These elves sounded sophisticated.

"Help? A dragon attacks Erebor, what help came from the elves? Orcs plunder Moria, desecrate our sacred halls, the elves looked on and did nothing. You ask me to seek out the very people who betrayed my grandfather and betrayed my father."

"You are neither of them. I did not give you that map and key for you to hold on to the past."

"I did not know that they were yours to keep." I saw Gandalf sigh, and storm past me away from the company.

"Everything alright?" asked Bilbo, who obviously had no idea on what had just happened. "Gandalf, where are you going?"

"To seek the company of the only one around here who's got any sense."

"Who's that?"

"Myself, Mr. Baggins!" snapped Gandalf. "I've had enough of dwarves for one day." Deciding to leave Thorin to cool down and seeing all of the others doing something or other, I decided to go in search of Fili and Kili. To be honest, I was pretty surprised they weren't sick of my company yet. I didn't have to walk far until I heard their voices.

"I told you, Kili! I can't!"

"Fili, just tell her!"

"I've only known her a few weeks. She'd probably go running for the hills. Besides, what are the chances of…"

"Will you stop putting yourself down!"

"Kili, I'm not…I'm just…" Frowning, I decided that I'd better announce my presence. It was obviously a conversation that was private between the two, and I knew better than to disrespect that.

"Ahem."

"Amaya!" jumped Fili. "How…um, how long have you been there?"

"Only a few seconds. Thorin's been arguing with Gandalf, I figured I'd better leave; let everything cool down."

"That was probably wise. As much as we like Uncle, we've learnt that it's best to let him calm down on his own." Said Kili.

"So, what were you guys talking about before I turned up?"

"Oh, nothing important, isn't that right, Fili?" I saw Fili glare at his brother.

"Amaya? Amaya?" I heard a voice shout through the trees. A few seconds later, Bofur turned up. "Oh, you're here. I said to Thorin you'd probably be with these two. He was wondering where you'd gone, you'd just disappeared."

"Oh, god, sorry! I didn't think. Do you want me to go back, or…"

"No, no, that's not necessary. I'll just tell them you're with these two, should be fine. Dinner's nearly ready, by the way. We'll get someone to bring it over."

"Thanks, Bofur." He smiled as he walked away. "You know, I really do like it here." Well that comment was out of the blue.

"'Here?'" asked Kili. "What are you talking about?"

"You know. Here, Middle Earth. It's nice."

"Then why are you frowning?" asked Fili, taking one of my hands in his. I was frowning?

"I don't know." I tried to think of my answer. To be honest, it was a bit distracting when I focused on the feeling of my hand in his. "Because…I feel guilty, I suppose. I mean, I left everything behind, everything and everyone I've ever know, and now I don't really miss anything, (well, besides indoor plumbing and internet…) but still…"

"You're allowed to feel guilty, Amaya. But you need to remember that you didn't ask to come here; it isn't your fault. But it's good you like it here. That makes us feel good as well."

"But what about when this quest is over? I'll have nowhere to go! What would I do?"

"What are you talking about?" asked Kili, looking confused.

"You know that you are always welcome with us, miz sanâzyung ." Continued Fili. "We would never leave you in the middle of nowhere where you don't know anyone, and I doubt Thorin would let you wander off on your own. I would…I mean, _we_ would never do that."

I sniffed. "Thank you guys. Come here."

"What?"

"Come here." They shuffled closer until I pulled them closer into a hug. Realizing what I was doing, they were soon hugging me back with an equal amount of force until I noticed a problem. "Hang on a minute."

"What is it?" Kili asked, pulling away.

"Is it me, or are we missing some ponies?"

"Damn."

-8-

Thank you all for reviewing! For the person who is asking what 'miz sanâzyung' means, I'm afraid you'll have to wait and see! All will be revealed… I'm glad everyone else is enjoying, and the next chapter will be up soon with trolls featuring as our 'special guests'.


	8. Chapter Eight

Chapter Eight

"Are we just going to stare at the ponies, or…?" I asked, as all three of us crouched down.

"But they were just there!" exclaimed Kili, looking increasingly frustrated.

"And now they're not!" I huffed, turning around to see Bilbo attempting to walk through the forest carrying three bowls. "Is that dinner?" He nodded. Grinning, I grabbed a bowl and started eating.

"What's the matter?" asked Bilbo, seeing Fili and Kili still staring at the ponies.

"We're supposed to be looking out for the ponies." Said Kili.

"Only we've encountered a slight problem." Continued Fili, turning around.

"We had sixteen."

"Now there's fourteen."

"Daisy and Bungo are missing."

"I blame Kili." I said, making everyone turn to me. "What?"

"What did I do?"

"I don't know. I blame you for most things." I grinned to let him know I was joking.

"Well, this isn't good." Said Bilbo, ignoring me. "This is not good at all. Shouldn't we tell Thorin?"

Remembering the mood I'd left him in, I quickly joined in with Fili and Kili in shouting "No!"

"Uhh, no." said Fili, wiping his thumb near my mouth where I'd obviously spilt some stew. (I was not the most graceful of eaters, and the amount of times we had stew was astounding) But seriously, did this dwarf know what to do to make a girl swoon… "Let's not worry him." he continued. "As our official burglar, we thought you might like to look into it."

"Well, uh…" said Bilbo, putting the other two bowls on a fallen log and going to look around. "Look, some…something big uprooted these trees."

"That was our thinking." Agreed Kili.

"Something very big, and possibly quite dangerous."

"Hey!" exclaimed Fili, walking a few metres away. "There's a light. Over here! Stay down." I followed Fili, putting down my now empty bowl, as he ran through the forest. "Stop!" he whispered. I furrowed my eyebrows as he hid behind a log, and quickly joined him when I heard laughter coming from in front.

"What is it?" asked Bilbo.

"Trolls."

"Wait, trolls?" I interrupted. "Like real trolls. They actually exist? Honestly, I think I'm beginning to know everything here, and then something like this comes along."

"Right. Stay here." Said Fili, before running off towards the fire that was obviously causing the light he'd seen before with the others.

"What?" I whisper shouted. "I'm not just going to stay here!" Leaping up, I jogged over in the direction I'd seen him run in before being pushed into a tree. "Hey, wha..." Before I could finish my sentence, a hand was against my mouth and Fili's face came into focus. Looking up, I saw what I could only assume was the troll walking by. I didn't get a clear look at it, but I figured it didn't look pretty.

"I thought I told you to stay where you were. Trolls may be stupid, but they're dangerous, and I'm not going to see you get hurt." Said Fili, looking more worried than I'd seen him look before.

"I couldn't just stay there!"

"Yes, you could."

"He's got Myrtle and Minty!" said Bilbo, breaking up Fili and I's conversation. "I think they're going to eat them, we have to do something!"

"Yes…you should." Replied Kili, looking like he was planning something. Seriously, I had learnt to not trust that face. "Mountain trolls are slow and stupid, and you're so small."

"N…n…no…"

"They'll never see you!"

"No, no, no…"

"It's perfectly safe! We'll be right behind you."

"If you run into trouble, hoot twice like a barn owl, once like a brown owl." Continued Fili, giving him a slight push towards where the trolls were sitting. I stayed watching until I felt someone pulling me away.

"Hey! What are you doing? Do you seriously think that sending Bilbo off into some sort of troll den is the best way to get the ponies back? Jesus Fili! The hobbit can barely ride a pony, let alone get them back from three huge ass trolls!"

"Amaya, listen, I know that. But we're going to go back to camp and tell Thorin, and we'll get the ponies back, and Bilbo will be fine, okay? Come on." I sighed. "Amaya, trust me." I nodded, and we ran to catch up with Kili who had already reached camp and had told the others about what had happened.

"Trolls?" confirmed Thorin. Kili nodded.

"Three of them by the looks of it." The company soon started gathering weapons and running off into the woods.

"Amaya!" I turned to see Thorin. "You stay here."

"But I can help! I've been training…"

"Stay here!" And suddenly, I was on my own. Fili had given me his own 'stay here' glance (more of a wide-eyed expression and was mouthing 'stay here' to make sure I got the message) before running off as I slumped down on a fallen branch. Why should I have to stay here? Because I couldn't defend myself? Because it was safer here? 'Of course, dumbass!', I thought. It was safer here, yes, but I could defend myself a little. And I didn't have to go and let the trolls notice me, just make sure the others were okay. Yes, I would do that. Thorin and Fili would never know.

Standing up, I quickly made my through the forest again, and made it to the clearing where the trolls were. The dwarves had clearly tried to fight them; the trolls were covered in arrows from Kili's bow, and were bleeding (albeit not very much) from where they'd been stabbed. But I had arrived just in time to see two of the trolls grab Bilbo and hold him by the arms and legs.

"Lay down your arms, or we'll rip his off." I gasped, but quickly put my hand in front of my mouth. It would not be a good idea to let the dwarves hear me; or even worse, the trolls.

I sat by the tree silently debating on what to do. Half of the dwarves were now rotating around on a spit being slowly roasted, whereas the other half were tied up in sacks that looked like they reeked judging by the looks on some of their faces. But I couldn't do anything. If the entire company couldn't stop the trolls, then I certainly couldn't. I had enough common sense to figure that out on my own. Then a thought occurred to me: Gandalf! He would know what to do, he was a wizard! But where was he?

Unfortunately, before I could set off to find him, I'd taken my eyes of the trolls and was currently being grabbed none too gently by a giant hand.

"'ere, Tom, look what I found!" Getting a close up look at the trolls, I found that I was right in saying that they were not pretty. They had a grayish colour to their skin, and putting it lightly, they looked like their faces had been bashed with a frying pan with immense force. Multiple times.

"Wha' is it?"

"Looks like one o' these dwarves. But wi' less hair."

"I don't know what it is, but there's not much meat on it. One mouthful at the most." I felt myself being lifted towards the trolls' mouth. Let's just say I would never complain about morning breath again.

"Amaya!" I heard Fili shout from down in his sack. What I wouldn't give to be in a sack right now as opposed to being dangled over a trolls mouth… "Amaya!"

"Jus' put it in a sack with the others!" ordered the third troll. I was beginning to take back what I said about the sacks. They didn't look appealing.

-8-

After a few minutes of being forced into a smelly, scratchy, overly large sack, I had been tossed roughly onto the ever growing dwarf pile. I was, much to my luck, lying next to Fili and trying to make my nose immune to the smell. Although it seemed a bit mean, I found myself thinking that I was glad he was in a sack as opposed to being rotated around a fire like the others.

"We told you to stay back at camp." Whispered Fili.

"Well I obviously wasn't going to do that, was I?" I hissed back. I saw his lips twitch up before his worried face returned.

"I should have known better, I suppose. But it was exactly this situation that I was trying to avoid!"

"You knew we were going to be caught by trolls and tied into bags ready to be eaten?"

"Well, no…not exactly, but the captured and eaten parts, yes! I told you I didn't want to see you hurt, and I meant it. I promise I'll keep you safe. They won't hurt you."

"No offense Fili, because honestly, I appreciate the gesture, but you're in as bad a state as I am."

"That doesn't mean I won't try." I swear, I nearly teared up at that. No one, in my entire life, had ever tried to protect me as much as this dwarf here, and it made me feel all tingly inside. Looking over at him, I saw him already staring at me with a peculiar look on his face. Like he wanted to tell me something, but couldn't quite find the words.

"Fili, what is it?"

"I…I need to tell you…I've wanted to say, for quite a while now…"

"Wait!" shouted Bilbo, causing Fili to go silent and his cheeks to go red. "You are making a terrible mistake!"

"You can't reason with them!" cried Dori from on the spit, which was starting to look incredibly hot. "They're half-wits!"

"Half-wits?" exclaimed Bofur, who was also on the spit. "What does that make us?" I watched with some amusement as Bilbo attempted to stand up in his sack. Bless the Hobbit.

"Uh, I meant with the, uh…with, uh…with the seasoning." Seasoning? What? He better be going somewhere with this.

"What about the seasoning?" asked one of the trolls.

"Well have you smelt them? You're going to need something stronger than safe before you plate this lot up?"

"Look's like you're not the only one who realised I smelt." I said to Fili, who breathed a laugh. "As soon as we get out of this, I am going to take such a long bath the first chance I get." I watched with amusement as his cheeks went redder, and wondered what had caused it. "Are you embarrassed when I mention me bathing?"

"What?" his voice cracked. "O…of course not. I just…it's hot in here."

"Uh huh." I smirked.

"What do you know about cooking dwarf?" a troll asked Bilbo.

"Shut up and let the, uh, flurgaburburrahobbit talk." Interrupted another. 'Flurgaburburrahobbit?' Must have been from before I got here.

"Uh, th…the secret to cooking dwarf is, um…" Bilbo stalled.

"Yes? Come on."

"It's, uh…"

"Tell us the secret!"

"Ye…yes, I'm telling you, the secret is…to skin them first!" My eyes widened. I'd figured out what he was doing (he was stalling them), but surely the trolls were grouping me with the dwarves, and I didn't fancy being skinned. I felt Fili wriggling around next to me.

"What are you doing?" I whispered.

"Just stay still!" And with a great heave, Fili was almost lying on top of me; he was just in a position where he wasn't crushing me but I could feel him (again, yes, that sounded quite wrong…), and it took me a minute to realise he was doing it to shield me from view, basically putting himself in more danger. This was going to require much more than a simple 'thank you'. I would have to think of something special to thank him.

Meanwhile, all the other dwarves were cursing and shouting at Bilbo, calling him a traitor.

"What a load of rubbish!" yelled the nearest troll. "I've eaten plenty with their skins on. Scuff them, I say, boots and all."

"'e's right! Nothing wrong with a bit of raw dwarf! Nice and crunchy." I winced as the troll picked up Bombur and held him upside down.

"Not…not that one!" yelled Bilbo over everyone else, who were shouting to let Bombur down. "He…he's infected!"

"You what?"

"Yeah, he's got worms in his…tubes." I heard a thump and grunts of pain as Bombur was thrown back on the pile. "In…in fact they all have, they're in…infested with parasites. It's a terrible business. I wouldn't risk it, I really wouldn't."

"Parasites, did he say parasites?" "We don't have parasites! You have parasites!" "What are you talking about, laddie?" yelled various dwarves, as they argued. I saw Bilbo roll his eyes at their antics.

"You know he's stalling right?" I told Fili. "Tell the others." But he hadn't needed to, for they were already correcting themselves.

"I've got parasites as big as my arm!" "Mine are the biggest parasites, I've got huge parasites!" "We're riddled!" "Yes, I'm riddled."

I rolled my eyes. What lovely thoughts. I made a mental note to remind them of this later.

"What would you have us do, then, let 'em all go?" asked a troll. Honestly, they were all as ugly as each other, I couldn't tell which was which.

"Well…"

"You think I don't know what you're up to? This little ferret is taking us for fools!"

"Ferret?" Really Bilbo, of all the things to be offended from, you pick 'ferret?'

"Fools?" asked another troll, also clearly offended.

"The dawn will take you all!" cried a voice nearby.

"Who's that?"

"No idea."

"Can we eat 'im too?"

I shielded my eyes as a huge rock above us was split in two, revealing the sun and, what I was even more pleased about, Gandalf. I watched as the sunlight reached the dwarves, freezing them in place as they were turned to stone in an instant. I smiled as I heard Dwalin yell,

"Oh, get your foot out of my back!"

-8-

I was very sorry to say that I now smelt no better out of the sack than in it. The smell seemed to have some way of clinging to your clothing, and it seemed to follow you everywhere you went.

"Amaya. Are you okay?" I turned to see Kili.

"Oh, yeah, I feel great! Nothing like a near-death experience to make you really appreciate life. What about you? Didn't Bombur land on you? It didn't hurt your parasites did it?" I laughed.

"Oh ha ha. Very funny. Me and my parasites are good, thank you very much. Although I wouldn't say anything about a 'near-death experience' around Fili. He stills feels like it's his fault for you being in that situation."

"What, how could he think that? It wasn't his fault in the slightest!"

"Look, he doesn't feel that way. I've been trying to tell him. But he has his reasons, and I'm sure he'll explain them to you some time or another, okay?"

"Right…" I frowned. "Hey, Bilbo!" I shouted, running over to where he was standing. Considering it was due to him that we were still alive and not being digested in a troll's stomach, it seemed odd to see him alone. "Hi."

"What? Oh, hello Amaya."

"I just wanted to say thank you for back with the trolls. We would probably be dead without you, so thanks." And for the first time since I'd met him, Bilbo gave me a full-blown grin.

"Well, I only did what I could…I was glad to be of some use. You know, no one else has come and told me that yet…" and now he looked slightly put down.

"I'm sure they're all thinking it, Bilbo. You know how stubborn they can all be. And so consider this a thank you from everyone. You are important to this company, just remember that."

"You think so? Because I am not so sure." My heart broke for the Hobbit. He was clearly still having trouble fitting in, whereas I was having no problems but was more of the outsider than him. I thought to myself then that he would not feel so left out again.

"Of course you are important, Bilbo! Hell, tonight proved it!" I looked over his shoulder to see Thorin beckon me. "Look, I need to talk to Thorin. I'll catch up with you later, okay? Remember what I said!"

Walking over to Thorin, I did not like the look on his face. It was a cross between worry, anger, disappointment and relief. I didn't know you could portray all those emotions at once, but there you go.

"I told you, explicitly, to stay where you were." He said, frowning.

"I know, but…"

"You didn't listen."

"I know that, but…"

"You could have been killed."

"I couldn't just stay there! I had no idea what was going on, and I was never planning on getting caught! I was just going to sit on the edge, and when I had the idea to search for Gandalf, I was caught! I honestly didn't mean to, but you can't expect me to do nothing. I'm sorry, really."

"I know. But next time, listen to what I say and do it." I nodded, clearly not realizing that he cared so much about me. "Now go on."

"Lass!" I turned my head to Dwalin. "Catch, breakfast." I quickly held up my hands and caught the bread bun he's thrown. Eating it in less than a minute, I found myself with nothing to do.

"Miz sanâzyung."

"Are you actually going to tell me what that means?" I asked, turning to face Fili.

"Maybe one day, perhaps. How are you?"

"I'm fine. I stink, but I'm okay. Listen, I was talking to Kili…"

"I'm sorry."

"Wait, what?"

"I'm sorry. It was my fault that you were in danger tonight, and I…"

"Fili, listen. This wasn't your fault. I came here tonight from my own free will. I got caught because I wasn't paying attention. Neither of those things are your fault, in the slightest. Do. Not. Blame. Yourself." I took a step forward with every word, and I noticed that I was close enough to see his eyes (which, incidentally, were a soft green colour with various flecks of light brownish hazel).

"But…you don't blam…"

"Not. Your. Fault." I watched as his face came closer to my own, about to close my eyes, when…

"Pack up! We're moving out!" yelled Thorin.

"We'll talk later, right?" I asked, giving a small (and frankly embarrassed) smile as I stepped back.

"Later." He promised.

-8-

A/N: and there we go! Slightly longer than I was originally going for, but I quite like this chapter. I'm actually thinking of maybe doing a chapter in Fili's point of view, but I am honestly not sure, so I'd like to hear what you guys think. Until next time! 3


	9. Chapter Nine

Chapter Nine

It turns out that we were looking to try and find a troll hoard. I wasn't particularly bothered about this. Going to some smelly, probably bug-infested cave? No thank you. (I hated bugs, spiders in particular) That, and I was quite annoyed at the fact that me and Fili kept getting interrupted, and I really wanted to know what he was going to say because I honestly had no clue. What could be so…hard to say? Was it to say that I was spending too much time with him? I was with him an awful lot. Maybe he was getting sick of me? But he didn't act like he was…that couldn't be it. What was it, then?

Walking along with Bofur and Bombur, I was about as far from Fili as I could get. I looked over to where he was walking with his brother to see him looking down at the floor shaking his head. His brow was furrowed and he seemed deep in thought. Maybe he was disappointed that we were interrupted as well? I kicked the floor in frustration.

"Are you okay, lass?"

"Hmmmm?" I looked over at Bofur.

"You look mightily frustrated over there."

"Do I? Sorry, I was just thinking."

"Anything you care to talk about?"

I paused for a second. "Do you know what's wrong with Fili?"

"What do you mean, lass?" asked Bombur, who I was beginning to get pretty close to, as I helped him cook often, and like his brother, managed to make me laugh often with his jokes and humour. And I think he enjoyed me teaching him new dishes from my world. He was particularly interested in making pizza after I'd expressed I'd missed it and they said they had no idea what it was. (To say I was outraged was an understatement and I had promised I would make it as soon as possible)

"He's been trying to tell me something and I don't know what. He'll be saying something, and I can tell that he wants to tell me something, but then he never does! And we keep getting interrupted, and I have no idea what it could be about! Did I do something?" I saw them exchange smiles. "What? Why does everyone seem to know something I don't!"

"It's really not our place to say, lass. I'm sure he'll tell you when the time is right."

"Ri…URGH!" I held my nose. It was like a sudden surge of… stinkiness. If I thought that the sack smelt bad, let's just say I would gladly go back in it. "You're not actually going to go in there, are you?" I asked, seeing Bofur move forward.

"Of course, lass. You never know what treasures you might find." He winked. Sighing, I sat down on a nearby rock and watched most of the company venture into the cave. Honestly, I had no idea how they stood the smell. Looking around, I saw Ori sitting to the side, writing, as usual, in his journal. I would have to ask one day what he wrote in there.

"Not going in either, huh?" I asked, moving to sit next to him. I liked Ori. He was always easy to talk to, and seemed the most interested of my life before I came here. It was nice to sometimes just sit and remember my life before this. I didn't particularly want to forget everything too soon, because deep down, I knew it was only a certain amount of time before I did.

"No. I much prefer to sit here than look for gold and jewels in a troll cave." I smiled.

"Really?"

"Is that surprising?" his face dropped. "I know I'm not like the others, my brothers are always saying I should be…but I know they're only looking out for me…"

"Ori, listen, do you really think it matters that you're different? Listen to me, where I come from, people are put down and made fun of for being different. But let me tell you, all of those other people are just jealous, they don't matter, and I'm sure your brothers don't care that you're different either. You be proud of who you are." I blinked, wondering where that had come from, and thinking that things got deep pretty quick. Must be the psychiatrist in me coming out.

"Thanks Amaya." He smiled.

"No problem. Anytime. Hey, Thorin!" I shouted, seeing him walk out of the cave looking cheesed off. Wonder what happened in there… "Are we going anywhere today?"

"Yes, after a brief rest. We'll stop earlier this evening, but it's best we make some distance from this place." Great. Staying up all night stuck in a sack and travelling all day on a pony that still felt pretty uncomfortable? Did dwarves not need sleep?

-8-

After a brief bit of lunch (and I mean brief, like five minutes of trying to eat enough to keep me full for the day), we made our way back to the ponies.

"Amaya." I walked forward to Fili's pony to see him sliding off. "Here, I got you this." He reached into his bag and pulled out a sword that I'd never seen before. "I thought that maybe you could use this instead of borrowing one of mine. Not that I mind! But you'd…uh, you'd have one of your own, and it's better to train with a sword you're familiar with. It's quite a good one, sharp, so…"

I threw my arms around in neck and gave him a hug, trying to express my feelings, which were growing for this dwarf everyday. "Thank you." I whispered.

"I got you something else as well." I cocked my head to the side pulling back.

"What else? I don't need anything else."

"Well, I saw this, and I thought that it would look nice. It's a, uh…it's a clip, for your hair. I noticed that it falls in your face quite a bit and annoys you. And it matches your eyes." He added, quietly. I looked down to see him holding out a small clip that had a few deep blue-green stones encrusted in it. It had a flower design with vines that were intertwined and was designed so it would just slide in your hair. All in all, it was beautiful. "Would you like me to put it in your hair for you?" Nodding, I felt him brush back my hair and slide the clip in. "Perfect."

"Thank you." I smiled, not sure of what else to say. "We better get going, Thorin's going to be annoyed if we don't move soon."

"Right."

-8-

Half an hour into the journey and I was already feeling the effects of not sleeping in the night. I hadn't been sleeping well the past few nights; the ground had been very rocky. Add that to the drama with the trolls, yeah, I was pretty tired. Yawning, I leant my head back on Fili's chest.

"Go to sleep if you're tired." He said.

"I can't go to sleep. I'm on a pony; I'll fall off."

"I won't let you fall off. Go to sleep." Sighing, I slouched down as much as I could; I could feel Fili's arms tighten around me, and with that I fell asleep.

_Fili_

I looked down as Amaya slept. She'd been looking pretty tired recently and I couldn't blame her. Even I had trouble sleeping some nights, but dwarfs found it easier than others to go without much sleep. I saw the clip I'd given her shine when the sun hit it; honestly, it was more of an impulse thing to give it to her, like it was made for her in the first place.

I'd been trying to tell her for a few days now how I felt. I always seemed to chicken out, but today I was so close. But thinking about it, what was I supposed to say? That she was my One? I doubted she even knew what that meant. And now I had Kili constantly bugging me to tell her. He wouldn't shut up about how I almost kissed her, and about how she almost kissed me back.

Honestly, when I came on this journey, I was never expecting this to happen. Because now I was sure that I loved her. I really did. But I had no idea if she felt the same way. We'd only known each other a few weeks, and while the bond that forms between a dwarf and his One can sometimes be almost instant, Amaya wasn't a dwarf. She wouldn't experience this bond that quickly. What if I told her, and she didn't feel the same way? I was holding onto the hope that she would- it happened in most cases- but I couldn't just blurt it out.

"So laddie, you told her yet?" asked Balin.

"What? Urm, no…not yet." I looked down. Why was the entire company involved? Was I that obvious?

"Well I'd hurry up if I were you. She's been going around asking why you're acting so funny when you're talking to her. Asking us what you want to say. She thinks something's wrong."

"But nothing's wrong!"

"We know that. But she doesn't. So hurry up."

"How do you all know anyway?"

"Are you joking?" asked Dwalin. "You go around calling her that nickname of yours, and you're wondering how we know?" Ah, I should have known…

"Fair enough." One of my hands flew off the reigns as Amaya moved in her sleep almost falling from the side of the pony.

"Not to mention that you're with her almost every second you get, looking at her with that pining expression of yours." Added Bofur.

"I do not pine!"

"You do a bit, lad." Said Gloin, joining in with the conversation. "It's a wonder she hasn't noticed."

"Yeah, okay. I get it." Hearing the company burst out laughing, I joined in.

_Amaya_

I woke up to a slight vibrating feeling. Cracking my eyes open, I saw that I was still on the pony and everyone seemed to be laughing.

"What are we laughing at?" I asked, my voice slightly croaky. How nice. Attractive.

"Amaya!" said Fili, stopping laughing. "You're awake! Sorry, did we wake you?"

"No, I don't think so anyway. How long was I out for?"

"Not long. I think we're stopping soon though."

"Oh, ok." There it was again. The weird tone of voice where he sounded like he wanted to say something more.

-8-

We camped that night a couple of hours earlier like Thorin said we would. We had a nice dinner (I'd taught Bombur how to do kebabs, and we spent a good fifteen minutes having fun putting the rabbit and vegetables on sticks and having little stick fights) and I decided after to pull out my pack and lie down for the night. Taking the clip out of my hair, I put it in a side pocket in Fili's bag so it wouldn't break if I laid on it in the night.

I had been lying down deep in my thoughts for about an hour before I realised that the sun had gone down and the stars had come out.

"You know," I said to the people nearest to me (which happened to be Fili, Kili, Bilbo and Ori). "I think one of the things I miss the most is the stars."

"What are you talking about? There are stars here." Said Ori.

"I know that. But they're different. Not in the same places. When I was younger, I used to sit out in the garden and just watch the stars for hours. I wasn't supposed to, and I got caught a few times, but it was worth it. You see there." I pointed to a point in the sky. "Back home around this time you could see this constellation called 'Orion's Belt'. It's like three stars that are all in a row that's part of a bigger constellation that looks like an archer."

"Sounds nice." Said Kili. "Why weren't you allowed in the garden though?"

"I grew up in a care home-that's like a place where children go if no one is there to look after them- and they were quite strict. Not allowed out after a certain time and all that."

"What happened to your mother and father?"

"My dad was in the army. He died when I was two." I replied, sighing. "And my mum died of a drug overdose when I was six. She didn't cope too well when dad died, that was her outlet." I finished talking and looked up to see the whole camp was silent.

"Amaya, I'm sorry, I wouldn't have asked if…"

"Kili, it's fine. I wouldn't have answered if it wasn't. And it was a long time ago, I'm over it." He nodded and settled down to go to sleep. I took a deep breath.

"How long did you stay in the care home for?" asked Fili, moving closer so the others couldn't overhear.

"Until I was considered an adult. So eighteen. I moved away as soon as I could to go to university, made new friends, got a job…it was good. And then I ended up here."

"But you were happy there, right?"

"Urm…yeah I guess. I had my off days, but everyone does, don't they? But all in all, considering the circumstances, it was good." I gave him a reassuring smile.

"Okay then. But when we get to Erebor and settle in, you can meet my mother when she comes. I'm sure she'll love you. She has a good sense of character."

"Really? You think she will?" I asked, my hopes rising. If Fili wanted me to meet his mum, surely that meant I was more than just a friend on a quest. That things wouldn't change once it had ended. That he meant what he said about always being welcome with him.

"I'm positive." I grinned. "Now we better get to sleep. Not all of us got a nap in the middle of the day." I rolled my eyes and laid down, wriggling around until I got comfortable.

"Right, sure. Good night Fili."

"Sweet dreams, miz sanâzyung." And soon I was asleep, dreaming of stars, mountains and Fili.

-8-

A/N: I'm not so sure on this chapter, it was more of a filler to be honest. But I just wanted to try out writing in Fili's point of view. (Let me know what you think about that!)

Thank you all for the reviews! They keep the updates coming!


	10. Chapter Ten

Chapter Ten

I woke up the following morning to find that I was lying on something soft. Opening my eyes and blinking a few times to get used to the sun, I tried to get up only to be pulled back down to the ground again.

"What the-" Lifting my head a little instead, I focused to see what I was lying partly on Fili's chest (a little awkward) and he had his arm wrapped around me, which was what was keeping me from getting up (a little more awkward). I blushed as I peered around. Most of the company were waking up, and Thorin, who had taken last watch so the others could get more sleep, was subtly smirking our way. Sighing, I freed one of my arms and shook Fili. "Fili. Pssst. Wake up."

"Nnnnnnnng." He groaned.

"What?" I laughed.

"I don't want to."

"Well, you have to. I would like some breakfast, and the others are starting to stare."

"Wha-?" He opened his eyes, and seemed to realise the position we were in. "Oh Mahal, sorry! I must have…must have moved. Sorry! It won't happen again."

"Fili, it's fine, honestly. Besides, I think that's the best I've slept since back at Bilbo's." Giving him an awkward smile and laughing internally at the blush that spread on his cheeks, I got up without any resistance this time and made my way over to Bombur to help with breakfast. Considering this was one of the only things I could bring to the company, I was always willing to do it. Well, that and looking for fire wood with anyone else who would look with me.

"I'm almost finished with this, lass." He said, gathering the bowls. "Here." He filled two bowls with something that I'd become accustomed to relating to porridge. "Take this to Fili." Giving him an odd look (I normally helped him dish out and give breakfast to the others almost every morning) I took the bowls with a thank you and walked back to Fili, who was seeming a lot more awake than before.

"Here. Breakfast. Eat up." I said, handing him a bowl.

"Thank you, miz sanâzyung." He replied, smiling. We spent the next few minutes or so eating in silence, before I heard something in the distance.

"Hey. Do you hear that?"

"Hear what?"

"It sounds like a voice…" I saw Thorin stand next to me out of the corner of my eye.

"Amaya's right." I gave a little 'see I told you' smirk towards Fili. "Something's coming!" All of a sudden, the dwarves all had their weapons drawn, and Fili had stood in front of me. Something which I was thankful for; I may have been training, but even I could see I was still pretty bad. This sword thing was a lot harder than I had anticipated. Never the less, I grabbed my new sword from Fili's bag (which luckily was right near my feet) and edged to the side of Fili.

"Thieves! Fire! Murder!" shouted the voice.

"What the hell?" I murmured.

I saw Gandalf give a sigh of relief. "Radagast! Radagast the Brown. Ah. What on earth are you doing here?" So this was another wizard? Hmmm. Not what I'd expected. He had a long beard, not entirely different to Gandalf's, with a floppy brown hat and… was that bird poo running down the side of his face? Well, each to their own, I suppose.

"I was looking for you, Gandalf." Radagast replied, hopping off his sleigh pulled by…rabbits! And pretty big rabbits as well. Kneeling down, I held my hand out for them to sniff, smiling when they all began to hop forward. "Something's wrong. Something's terribly wrong."

"Yes?" I looked up to listen to the conversation while absent mindedly stroking the rabbits' head to see Radagast opening and closing his mouth like he kept forgetting what he was going to say.

"Oh, just give me a minute. Um, oh, I had a thought, and now I've lost it. It was, it was right there, on the tip of my tongue." He gave an odd expression. "Oh, it's not a thought at all; it's a silly old…" And then he pulled out a stick insect from his mouth; something I never thought I'd see someone do with such a calm expression. "…stick insect!"

"Ew." I whispered, just loud enough for the people next to me to laugh. The two wizards went off to the side to speak privately, leaving us to our own devices. I decided to play with the rabbits. It had been a while since I'd seen a rabbit that I wasn't eating.

"They like you." Commented Kili.

"You sound surprised."

"Well yeah. It definitely took me a while to warm up to you." He grinned.

"Well if it means anything, it took me more than a while to like you. Still working on it, actually." I grinned back.

"Oh! You have wounded me, Blondie! You're making a habit of that! You better watch out."

"Empty threats, Kili, empty threats." I mocked.

"We'll see, Blondie, we'll see."

"He says we'll see." I said in a baby voice to the rabbits, picking one up and holding it above my head. "Yes he does. But we'll show him, won't we? Yes we will."

"Are you really plotting against me with a group of rabbits?"

"A herd." I corrected.

"What?"

"A herd of rabbits. You said group. It's a herd. Not that it matters. They'd still be able to come up with a better…what did you say… plot, than you."

"Oh! Blondie's in a mean mood today? How do you cope, Fili?"

"Oh, I try my best." He winked.

"Gee, thanks Fili. Really feeling the love over here." I said. I was about to pick up another rabbit (They seemed to like all the attention. I was considering asking Radagast to 'adopt' one when the journey had ended), when a howl was heard from the distance.

"Was that a wolf?" asked Bilbo, sounding as scared as I was now feeling. "Are there…are there wolves out there?"

"Wolves?" asked Bofur. "No, that is not a wolf?" And suddenly, from behind a rock nearby, a huge, well, something I could only describe as a foul looking wolf, appeared, leaping down into the middle of the company. It was easily the most vile thing I'd seen here. (Maybe excluding the trolls) Holding onto my sword, I watched as Thorin leapt into action and stabbed it with his sword. Breathing a sigh of relief, I almost didn't see when a second leapt out just in time for Kili to shoot it. However, it staggered back up just for Dwalin to kill it none too gently with a blow to the head.

"Oh my god…" I breathed, my mouth gaping open.

"Amaya? Amaya, what is it?" asked Fili.

"You just…I mean, they just…killed…" I guess it was just sinking in. This training I was doing, it wasn't for fun. It was because I could actually be killed in this journey. I could die. I shook my head. No. Now wasn't the time for this. I could freak out later. "Nothing! Nothing!"

"Warg-scouts." Growled Thorin. "Which means an Orc pack is not far behind."

"Orc pack?" asked Bilbo.

"That's not good, is it? Orcs aren't good?" I asked.

"No." replied Kili, darkly. "Orcs aren't good."

"Who did you tell about your quest beyond your kin?" Questioned Gandalf in a hurry.

"No one." Answered Thorin.

"Who did you tell?!"

"No one, I swear. What in Durin's name is going on?"

"You are being hunted."

"We have to get out of here!" shouted Dwalin.

"We can't!" said Ori, running back into the centre of the company. "We have no ponies; they bolted."

"I'll draw them off." Stepped up Radagast.

"These are Gundabad Wargs." Warned Gandalf. "They will outrun you."

"These are Rhosgobel Rabbits; I'd like to see them try." I had to hand it to the wizard, he had balls.

-8-

Running was never a problem for me. At least when I knew I wasn't running for my life. Focusing on my breathing, my sword swinging in my hand as I still needed something to hold it in (Fili had conveniently forgotten that), I ran in front of Fili and behind Kili.

"Come and get me! Ha ha!" I heard Radagast shout.

"That wizard…is mental!" I panted.

"Move!" shouted Thorin as he saw the Wargs not too far from us. Picking up my pace, I made sure that I was never too far away from Kili. I didn't want to fall behind and there was no way I was going to die by being some overgrown wolf's dinner.

Down in front, I saw the others stop behind a rock as the Wargs got even closer. Pressing myself up against it, I watched in horror as Ori nearly ran out into the open before Thorin pulled him back.

"Come on! Quick!" urged Gandalf. Now, I know we were running for our lives, but it seemed this wizard seemed awfully eager to get somewhere particular, and Thorin seemed to pick up on this as well.

"Where are you leading us?" As Gandalf didn't answer we stopped behind another big rock, but this time I heard ragged breathing above us. Taking a deep breath, I looked up to see the end of a huge snout with even bigger teeth. I saw Kili take a step forward to the side of me, his bow loaded, and quickly shoot the warg above. Unfortunately, they hadn't bargained for the Orc rider on top of it, and the noise it made in the time it took to kill it had undoubtedly alerted the others to where we were.

"Move! Run!" As I ran, I looked around. Wargs and riders seemed to surround us in every direction and I honestly had no idea how we were going to get out of this situation. Eventually, we had to come to a stop in the middle of a clearing. There was no where else to go.

"There's more coming!" shouted Kili.

"Kili! Shoot them!" yelled Thorin.

"We're surrounded!" cried Fili. "Where is Gandalf?"

"He has abandoned us!" accused Dwalin. Not believing that Gandalf could have just left us, I held up my sword, prepared to fight.

"Hold your ground!"

"I'm not gonna die." I muttered to myself. "But if I go down, I'm down as many sons of bitches as I can."

"It won't come to that." Growled Fili, brandishing his sword at a warg that was getting too close. "Not while I'm breathing."

"This way, you fools!" I heard Gandalf shout. Looking sideways, I saw him pop up from in front of a rock.

"Come on, move!" urged Thorin, making his way over. "Quickly, all of you! Go, go, go! Amaya, move!" Not needing to be told twice (and with a quick push from Fili), I legged it over to where the wizard was, seeing a small opening that must lead to a tunnel or something, or so I assumed. "Amaya, get in."

"Just wait!" I shouted back.

"Amaya, get in!"

"Not until Fili's here!" Although whether Fili was there at that moment or not was irrelevant, for in that instant, I felt myself being lifted and thrown into the hole feet first. "Hey!"

"Lass, calm down." Soothed Bofur. "You're fine. We're all fine. You see." He pointed. "Everyone's here." Turning, I saw that indeed, the others had slid in.

"Oh thank god!" I rushed forward, hugging Kili and Fili."

"Amaya, everyone's fine." Laughed Kili.

"I know. But I'm not used to this. It's just…silly, I know." I laughed softly, before hearing the sound of a horn from above. "What's that? What's happening?"

"Just stay back." I watched, wide eyed, as an orc body came tumbling into the hole as it sounded like a battle going on up above. I had to admit, this was definitely not a highlight in the journey so far. Thorin walked up to the body examining the arrow sticking out.

"Elves." He muttered.

"I cannot see where the pathway leads." Said Dwalin, facing the other way. "Do we follow it or no?"

"Follow it, of course!" exclaimed Bofur, moving forward.  
"I think that would be wise." Said Gandalf. Taking hold of Fili's hand (I honestly needed the comfort right now after everything), we weaved our way through a series of twisting tunnels, some quite narrow that the others had difficulty squeezing through much to my amusement.

It took about fifteen to twenty minutes to finally reach the end, and when I did, I found that the walk had been worth it. Looking out from the cliff face we were on, I saw what was quite easily the most beautiful place I had ever seen. It was indescribable, everything seemed so much clearer, so much better than I could have ever believed.

"The valley of Imraldis." Said Gandalf, laughing softly at the awed look on mine and Bilbo's faces. "In the Common Tongue, it's known by another name."

"Rivendell." Breathed Bilbo.

-8-

A/N: so we're finally in Rivendell! To reply to some reviews, I'm glad you're enjoying it! But you will definitely have to wait and see to find out what 'miz sanâzyung' means. Until the next time!


	11. Chapter Eleven

Chapter Eleven

"Here lies the last Homely House east of the sea." Continued Gandalf.

"This was your plan all along, to seek refuge with our enemy." Growled Thorin, glaring at the wizard.

"You have no enemies here, Thorin Oakenshield. The only ill-will to be found in this valley is that which you bring yourself."

"You think the Elves will give our quest their blessing? They will try to stop us!"

"Of course they will. But we have questions that need to be answered. If we are to be successful, this will need to be handled with tact and respect and no small degree of charm. Which is why you will leave the talking to me." While I would have normally found this last comment quite funny, I was too busy staring down at the valley below. I knew these Elves sounded nice (other than the whole, what I was beginning to call, Thorin Issue).

Feeling a slight tug on my hand, I saw Fili looking at me with an expectant expression.

"Are you going to stare at it all day, or do you actually want to go and see it?" Grinning, I ran ahead down the cliff path (making some of the dwarves frown at me. I guess they shared Thorin's opinion and weren't happy I was this excited), and found myself (and Fili, who I'd dragged with me) on a bridge. Slowing down, I looked around to see that there were no hand rails and it was a straight drop down. Well, I guess the Elves were confident in their balance enough to know they weren't going to fall over. Me however, not so much, so I slowed down to a fast walking pace.

Venturing further, we passed two big stone statues on either side at the end of the bridge, and found ourselves in a circular, what I guessed was a courtyard. Once the others had caught up, seeming a lot more reluctant to be here, I saw a figure walk down a flight of stairs nearby. He had long brown hair, a pale pointed face and pointed ears. Never did I think pointed ears would look so good. But they did. Seriously, if all Elves looked like this, I could definitely think that this would be a good stay.

"Mithrandir." The Elf greeted, with a bow of his head.

"Ah, Lindir!" I heard Thorin whisper a 'stay sharp' around the company.

"Lastannem i athrannedh i Vruinen." What? What had he said? Never the less, whatever he had spoken, it sounded very pretty. Made me actually want to be bothered to learn the language. (I was always crap with linguistics so I never had the patience with it)

"I must speak with Lord Elrond."

"My lord Elrond is not here."

"Not here? Where is he?" Suddenly, horns, the same ones I'd heard earlier, rang out. The company were suddenly on high alert, more so than they were before.

"Ifridî bekâr!" shouted Thorin. "Hold ranks!" I shouted objections as I was pushed into the middle of a dwarf circle. Honestly… I heard the sound of hooves hit the ground, stop, and then people landing on the ground.

"Gandalf." I heard someone say.

"Who is it?" I whispered. "What's going on?" I tried jumping to see over their heads. Damn being small.

"Lord Elrond." Greeted Gandalf, when no one answered me. A bit rude. "Mellonnen! Mo evínedh?"

"Farannem 'lamhoth i udul o charad. Dagannem rim na lant Vedui."

"What is he saying?!" I asked.

"Strange for Orcs to come so close to our borders. Something, or someone, has drawn them near."

"Ah." Said Gandalf. "That may have been us."

"Welcome Thorin, son of Thrain."

"I do not believe we have met." Said Thorin, coldly as I pushed my way back through to the front. Lord Elrond, I saw, certainly lived up to the name 'Lord'. He held himself upright, looked very wise, and like Lindir, seemed unfairly attractive.

"You have your grandfather's bearing. I knew Thror when he ruled under the mountain."

"Indeed; he made no mention of you." I widened my eyes. I liked Thorin, I was beginning to think of him as a father figure of some sort, but he was just being down-right rude.

"Nartho i noer, toltho i viruvor. Boe i annam vann a nethail vin." Seriously, what was this guy saying?

"What is he saying?" asked Gloin, clearly as confused and irritated as I was by this. "Does he offer us insult?"

"No, master Gloin." Said Gandalf exasperatedly. "He's offering you food."

"Ah, well, in that case, lead on." Preparing to follow the dwarves (I really had no choice; Fili was still holding my hand), I wasn't expecting to be stopped.

"I did not notice you had a woman travelling in your company." Said Lord Elrond. (did I really look that bad that he didn't notice? Oh wait, I was behind them the whole time! Carry on, Lord Elrond.) "We would like to offer you a bath and new clothes after your travels." Yep, I liked Elves.

At this, the dwarves crowded around me. "We stick together." Said Dwalin. "She stays with us."

"Guys!" I said, pushing myself to the front (again!). "Seriously, it's fine. They'll look after me, I'm sure. And unless you want to watch me bath, I think I should go alone." Laughing at the scandalized looks on all of their faces (and at least half a dozen of them blushing fiercely insisting that wasn't what they meant) I let go of Fili's hand to walk over to a female Elf with Lord Elrond.

"Amaya." I turned back to Fili to see him with a worried look. "Just…hurry back, okay?"

"Fili, I'll be fine. Stop worrying! Relax." And with a last reassuring smile, I hurried over to where the she-elf was waiting for me. "Sorry about that." I said as we starting walking. "They worry a lot. They may act all tough but they each have a heart of gold really. They're very protective."

"It's fine, miss. I understand."

"What's your name?"

"My name is Gweyr, miss."

"I'm Amaya." I greeted. "Can I ask you a question?"

"Of course, miss."

"Are all the elves this good-looking? I mean, everything around here is just…unfairly beautiful. I feel like a troll in comparison."

Gweyr laughed softly. "I suppose so. Elves are known for their beauty to all other races in Middle-Earth. I don't really notice it as much, I've lived here for many years. And you shouldn't worry about your looks. You are also very pretty, your hair in particular."

"Really?" I asked, quite flattered as we walked down various corridors. I never really got compliments back home.

I felt like I didn't have enough eyes; there was so much to see. "How old are you then? If you don't mind me asking of course, it's just…you don't look much older than me, and you said 'many years', so..."

"I am considered quite young, actually! I am just entering my eighth-hundredth and fifty-seventh birthday." My mouth gaped open.

"Oh my god…so, how long do Elves live?"

"We are immortal unless hit with a mortal wound or we die of grief."

"Really…wow. And I thought dwarves living to two-hundred and fifty was big." I laughed.

"Indeed. Here is your room, miss. You'll find a bath already drawn, and I will lay out a dress on your bed when you are finished. I will wait out here until you are done; you can call me if there is anything you need."

"Thank you, Gweyr. And you can call me Amaya, I don't mind. 'Miss' is far too formal." I smiled and walked through the door, seeing a large room with a big king-sized bed covered in silk sheets. There was a set of drawers, a dressing table, and also a door that led to a balcony. Nice. Hearing the door close behind me, I walked further in to see another door to the side which led to a bathroom. Smiling as I saw a nice large bathtub in there filled with scented bubbles, I quickly ran inside, stripped, and stepped into the bath, sighing at the nice warm feeling. Bliss.

Closing my eyes for a few minutes, I decided to try and clean myself. The water was already turning a faint shade of brown just from me lying there, and I thought it wise to wash my hair before the water got any dirtier. Seeing what I assumed was what the Elves used to wash their hair, I put some of it in my hands and lathered it into my hair, smiling at the softness of it.

Half an hour later, I was standing out of the bath (the water now a dark brown) and was wrapping a towel around my body. I felt a lot lighter than I did before, and I wasn't sure whether it was because of the all the dirt that had come off of me, or because of how relaxed I now felt. Whatever it was, it was a welcome feeling.

Stepping into the bedroom, I saw that Gweyr had indeed left a dress on my bed. It was a deep royal blue with a jewel-like belt that went under the bust. The back was corset like, and I hoped it wouldn't be too tight. The sleeves were short, but a thin silk material draped below down to the wrist.

Dropping my towel, I wasted no time in putting on the dress, marveling at the feeling of clean, soft clothes. However I soon came across a problem.

"Gweyr!" I shouted, careful not to be too loud so I didn't sound rude.

"Hello Amaya." she greeted. She always seemed very friendly, and I'd barely known her an hour. "What do you need?"

"Can you help me with this dress. I think it needs lacing up at the back."

"Of course." I was thankful that she didn't lace it up too tight, and when I looked in the mirror, I found that I actually looked quite nice in it. It seemed to compliment my curves in a flattering way, and while I wasn't particularly one of those people that obsessed over my body, at this moment, I felt good about myself. "There you go. Would you like me to do your hair for you?"

"Really? Yeah, okay." I sat down at the dressing table. "You know, you're probably the first female I've actually talked to since I've come here."

"Really? Where are you from?" I winced as she accidentally pulled my hair.

"Oh, far far away. It's like a whole other world." I internally smirked at my wording.

"And what of the dwarves you travel with?"

"As I said, they like to look out for me. I mainly talk to Fili and Kili." I must have had a certain expression on my face, because Gweyr giggled.

"You like one of them!"

"What? No, no, I don't…well, I mean, yes…kind of. I don't know! It's complicated. He wouldn't like me anyway…" Great, good answer there Amaya…

"Which one?"

"Fili…" I muttered.

"I understand. You like him, but you don't understand these feelings yet. But you will, just give it time. And you shouldn't put yourself down. I have not known you long, but I know there is no need to say things like that. He would be lucky to have you, in my opinion." Huh, who knew she could give such good advice? "What's it like there? Where you come from? I've always dreamed of travelling." I was glad of the change of subject, and didn't hesitate to answer. Although I had no idea what to say.

"Well maybe one day you'll get to go. Travel, I mean. But where I come from is a lot different to here. It's kind of hard to explain."

"Then I'll ask no more." She smiled and walked backwards. "There you go. Now, I'm guessing you'd like to get back to your company? I bet you're hungry."

I grinned. "Starving!"

-8-

Walking back through various corridors, I had to try my hardest not to trip over the bottom of my dress. I was also wearing flat shoes; it felt like I was walking in bare feet and I couldn't decide whether they were comfortable or not.

After around five minutes, I started to hear loud laughter coming from up ahead. "Would you like me to escort you further?" asked Gweyr. "I believe you can find your way from here."

"Yeah, thanks." I started to walk away. "Hey, Gweyr!" She turned around. "Anytime you want to talk to someone...you know, you can talk to me. It's nice to have a female friend around here. I think we'll probably be staying a while."

"That sounds nice." And with that she walked away, her dark brown hair swaying with each step. Look at me, this place has got me sounding all poetic.

Continuing down the corridor, the laughter quickly got louder and louder and I found myself speeding up until I was in the doorway. The dwarves were all sat around a long table, some looking at the food laid out in disgust.

"Ahem." I coughed.

"Amaya!" they chorused, half on them standing up in greeting. Smiling, I walked over to where Fili and Kili were sitting, happy that they saved me a seat.

"Amaya…" said Fili, one of those who had stood up. "You look…beautiful. Just…stunning." I blushed as his eyes swept over my form and sat down on his right hand side and on Kili's left.

"Thanks. It's nice to finally feel like a woman. I mean, you should have seen all of the muck that came off me. Did you guys wash? You seem cleaner." That was true. The muck that I had become accustomed to seeing in their beards and skin had disappeared, and they were wearing clean clothes. It was quite a refreshing sight.

"Aye." Said Kili. "Of course we didn't take as long as you, Blondie. We wondered what had happened. Fili could barely sit still. Kept glancing towards the door every minute."

"Really?" Fili didn't answer. He seemed deep in thought and kept glancing over with a weird look. "Well, I was talking to Gweyr actually." I said, helping myself to some salad.

"She that elf-maiden you left with?" I nodded. "Did she do your hair?" I nodded again. I quite liked my hair like this. Gweyr had braided my hair back so each side met at the back very delicately so it was kept back from my face. It was simple, yet quite pretty.

"How are you eating that?" I heard Ori ask me from a couple of seats away.

"What do you mean, Ori?"

"You can't say you actually enjoy this stuff?" asked Dwalin.

"It's salad, what's wrong with salad?" The dwarves muttered to themselves. "Right, okay, I get it. You don't like salad. So how long are we staying here?" I asked, changing the subject.

"A week or two, I think." Replied Fili, who had got over that weird silence he was in. "Uncle's not happy about it, but Gandalf thinks it best to stay and rest for a while and uncle had to agree." I grinned. "I'm guessing you're happy about that?"

"Yeah! This place is amazing! I mean, have you seen the grounds yet? I could spend hours in them, they look beautiful." I heard Fili mutter something under his breath. "What was that?"

"Nothing! Sorry, I was just…thinking…"

"Right…"

After that awkward moment, conversation flowed easily, and after about two more hours, I found myself getting tired. It had been a long day, and my mind kept drifting back to the bed in my room. "Guys, I'm calling it a night!" I yelled, trying to make myself heard over all the noise.

"You turning in, lassie?" shouted Bofur, getting the others' attention.

"Yeah. I'm exhausted. Sleep is calling."

"I'll walk you back to your room." Said Fili after the others had bid me good night, standing up and walking me to the door. Agreeing (and knowing that it wasn't really as much of an offer than a demand (and not that I minded)), I let him take hold of my hand and listened as the sound of the dwarves faded away as we walked towards my room. How I remembered the way I had no idea. I thought about how it would be weird sleeping in my own room for the next few nights. For weeks now, I'd been staying with the others, particularly near Fili. I'd come to realise that I took comfort in his presence, I slept easier with him around, and although I now had a bed, I thought about how it would take much longer to get to sleep.

"I'm glad you're okay." I heard him say quietly.

"What are you talking about? Why wouldn't I be okay?"

"For a while there, I didn't think we were going to make it out of that situation with the Wargs. I knew I had to protect you, but…it got me thinking. And…I can't die without telling you something. And that might happen on this journey."

"Fili, what is it? Tell me."

He inhaled deeply. "Okay…Amaya, I…"

"Amaya!" I heard a high-pitched voice say. Why now…? Sighing, I turned around to see Gweyr hurrying towards us with a smile on her face. She bent down to whisper in my ear. (Yet _another_ reminder of how short I now was. The only downside to this place) "Is this the dwarf you like? He is quite good-looking. For a dwarf…" she giggled again. I was now beginning to see why she was considered young to other Elves. She acted like a teenager.

I sighed again. "Yes. Gweyr, this is Fili. Fili…this is Gweyr."

I saw Fili give a smile that didn't reach his eyes. Something that didn't suit him. "A pleasure to meet you, Gweyr. Well, Amaya, I'm sure Gweyr will accompany you back now. Sweet dreams." And then he took my hand and placed a gentle kiss on my knuckles (Something he hadn't done since when I'd first met him) before walking back where we'd come from.

Deciding against calling him back with Gweyr around, I thought it best to just let her lead me back to my room. I could vaguely hear her talking over my own thoughts.

"And I've left a night dress on your bed for your stay. And I've got you a basin of water so you can wash before bed. Oh! I was thinking, if you're not doing anything tomorrow, maybe I could show you around…"

"Uh huh…" I said, not really paying attention. I was so close, _so close_, to finding out what he wanted to say, for I was sure this was what he had been trying to tell me. Only one more minute…that was all I needed. It was obviously pretty important. Just. One. More. Minute!

Unaware that I had thanked Gweyr and she had left me, I found myself alone in my room. "Damn it!" Taking a deep breath to calm down, I changed into the night dress (something which was also very soft, comfy, and flowed when I walked), washed my face and climbed into bed. It felt nice to finally have soft ground underneath me, but it felt empty, and I found myself thinking that I'd gladly trade the bed for the hard ground as long as Fili was there beside me…

-8-

A/N: so I'm not sure quite how long they'll be staying in Rivendell for…maybe a chapter or two, but I've got an idea in mind and Amaya will be making a big decision in the future. I quite like this chapter myself, but let me know what you think!

Thank you all for the lovely reviews! :)


	12. Chapter Twelve

Chapter Twelve

I woke up the next morning buried in very soft sheets, very reluctant to get up. But looking through the window, I saw the Sun was already well up in the sky, and thought it best if I got up in time for breakfast. Hopefully there was still some left. Wherever we were, Bombur still seemed to eat an awful lot.

Seeing that Gweyr had already been in and laid out a dress on my chair near my dressing table (a forest green dress with long sleeves this time which looked like it was for more casual use), I quickly changed and looked at my reflection in the mirror. The braids that had been put in my hair the previous day had held pretty well, so I decided to just brush the rest of my hair and leave them in. Kudos for Gweyr; she'd done a good job.

Walking out of my room, I retraced my steps back to the room where we'd eaten the night before.

"Amaya!" I heard a voice behind me shout. Turning, I saw Bofur running to catch up with me. "Late too, huh?"

"I guess. I didn't know when I had to wake up though. Where are you all staying?"

"Just around the corner from you, lass. Why, planning on visiting Fili for a little late night…"

"No! God, no, I was just wondering because I was…you know, wondering why you were down here, is all." Wow, that sounded reassuring.

"Right, lass. I believe ya." Rolling my eyes (he obviously didn't), I talked to Bofur until we reached where we would be eating breakfast. Breakfast certainly seemed a lot tastier than dinner last night. There was toast, different flavours of jam; a lot more than I was currently used to. Sitting beside Bilbo (who also seemed a lot more at peace here), I smiled at him before helping myself to several slices of toast with different flavours of jam that caught my fancy.

"So, how do you like Rivendell, Bilbo?" I asked between mouthfuls of food.

"It's amazing! You know I've always wanted to come here, visit the Elves. And now I'm actually here…it's like something out of my books."

"I know what you mean. Well, kind of. I mean, I never even knew Elves existed! Well they didn't exist, so it's kind of different. Anyway, now they're everywhere! It's quite weird."

"I can imagine."

"Yeah, well," I said, eating my last bite. "I think I'll see you later. Go exploring. Maybe see you around."

"Oh! Ok, see you later." Smiling, I got up and left the room, going in the opposite direction to where I came from. Exploring this place seemed like a good plan for the day, and it would allow me some alone time with my thoughts. (as if I needed any more after last night, I thought to myself). This was true. I'd stayed awake for at least three hours last night unable to get to sleep and just thinking to myself. I was beginning to get sick of my thoughts. They ranged from angry, to depressed, to 'just try and relax Amaya'.

Walking absentmindedly through the corridors, I didn't realise where I was going, and was soon sent crashing to the floor with a crash. What a good start to the day.

"Oh, I'm very sorry, my lady. Here." I lifted my head to see someone offering me their hand. Thinking that it was rude to not accept it, I held out my own and allowed them to pull me up.

"There's no need to apologize. It's my fault, I wasn't looking where I was going." Looking up, I saw that I was talking to by far the best looking elf I had ever seen. He had long, dark brown hair that was braided back, a silver head band what went across his forehead that I'd seen many elves wearing (although his seemed a lot more extravagant), silvery grey eyes and sharp cheekbones. Needless to say, I went a bit speechless. I mean, sure, I knew I liked Fili (maybe more than liked, and therefore was more partial to the more rugged look) but this elf was darn right attractive and you'd be a fool not to admit that.

"We'll call it no one's fault then." He smiled. "My name is Elladan, son of the Lord Elrond." Huh, I didn't know that Lord Elrond had a son (then again, why should I? I barely knew the elf!).

"I'm Amaya, daughter of…Mr. Osbourne." I guess that's as formal as I'm ever going to sound.

"Yes, I saw your company arrive yesterday. You're with the dwarves." I smiled and nodded. These elves were a bit blunt. Oh well!

"Indeed I am."

"Have you been shown around Rivendell yet. There is much to see, and if you don't have someone to show you around, you can miss a lot."

"Are you offering to show me around?" I grinned.

"If you want me to." He grinned back.

"In that case, lead on." Elladan first started the tour by showing me the gardens. There was a small stream that ran through them leading to a waterfall on a nearby cliff, there were far too many species of flowers to count (although they were all beautiful), and I could hear birds sing in the distance songs that were far more complicated than I was used to them singing.

"So how do you like my home so far, my lady?"

"It's very refreshing. Very beautiful. It's quite the change. But everyone's so tall! It's annoying."

Elladan laughed. "I can imagine. You are rather small."

"Ever thought that you were just really tall?"

"I don't think that ever crossed my mind, Shortie." Great, yet _another_ nickname.

-8-

"Do you have a training area?" I asked Elladan a couple of hours later.

"Of course, Shortie."

"Can you show me?" I said, ignoring the very condescending nickname I now had. Honestly, it was worse than 'Blondie'.

"Would you like to train?"

"I can?"

"If you'd like."

"Okay then! Yeah. I probably need to." Smiling, we walked back through the corridors (He'd currently been showing me a huge tapestry of some war fought a long time ago. I was already forgetting the details) towards a large grassy field. It had a shelf like structure that held different types of swords, bows and daggers.

"What would you like to train with?"

"A bow? I haven't done that in a while."

"Excellent choice." I smiled as he picked the exact bow I had been looking at. It had what I assumed was Elvish writing along the side and had a slight curve to its shape. That, and it looked big enough for me to hold and not be too big. That was probably why he picked it, I thought to myself. "Okay," he said as we made our way to the shooting area. "I'm guessing you've shot before?" I nodded. "But you've never had an excellent Elven teacher such as myself instructing you. So, I want you to show me what you can do." Suddenly quite nervous, I slid an arrow into the bow, got into position, and released the arrow. _Wham! _It hit the outer blue ring. Not bad, I thought to myself, although I knew that it had been a fairly lucky shot. I heard Elladan laugh. "Not as bad as I thought you'd be."

"You were expecting me to be bad!" I said, pretending to be outraged.

"Yes. Your posture was all wrong. You've obviously been taught the correct way to shoot, but you are awful at it."

"And I suppose I'll be an expert once you've finished with me?"

"I can guarantee you've taken the words right out of my brother's mouth." Came a voice from behind. Turning, I could have sworn I was seeing double. There, in front of me, was another Elladan, or someone who looked a lot like him in slightly different clothes, which was making sense from the word 'brother'. "You did not tell me you were in the company of a lady, brother. Especially one as pretty as this one." He smiled playfully as he bent down and kissed my hand. Blushing, I smiled back. "I am Elrohir, Elladan's older and better brother."

Rolling my eyes, I laughed. "Are you sure about that?"

"Very sure."

"Well your ego is certainly bigger, I'll give you that. Now if you don't mind, we're in the middle of training." I gave him a smug smile, and reloaded my bow. "So, what am I doing wrong?" I asked Elladan.

"Well." Said Elladan, and I could hear the smugness towards his brother as he spoke. "Your shoulders are much too tense. You need to relax them." Taking his advice, I got into position again, and shot. This time…yay! It hit the outer red ring. Okay, the elf's a good teacher, I'll give him that. "And that, brother, is why the lady prefers me."

"Oh, you wish!"

"Indeed I do." Okay, this pair of elves were definitely trouble makers. I would have to watch out for them during my stay.

"Well, let me try to change her mind." Said Elrohir, shoving his brother out of the way. "I can guarantee you get a bull's eye your next shot under my instruction."

"You seem awfully certain about that. What if I deliberately miss to prove you wrong?"

"You won't. Because like I said, you'll get a bull's eye. Now, load your bow. Good. Okay, move this foot here…" he positioned my feet into place. "…and move your hand slightly lower down." I could feel him secretly aiming the bow. Pretending to be oblivious, I made no comment. "And shoot." I was only slightly surprised when the arrow hit dead centre, and made to hug him. "And thus, her mind is changed!" he said, hugging me back.

"Don't be too smug, I felt you aiming for me." I whispered.

"Oh, she is too smart for me! I give up, brother, she is truly yours!"

"I am no one's thank you very much." I said, my hands now on my hips as the brothers cheered.

"Oh no?" said Elladan, now standing beside his brother with an equally cocky expression on his face. "Not even that blonde dwarf we saw you talking to last night when we were patrolling the corridors?"

"What, I didn't see you!"

"Well you wouldn't. We Elves are sneaky. You would never know we were there if we didn't want you to. And don't try to change the subject."

"Yeah, well…I'm not his either. I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Oh really?"

"Really."

-8-

_Fili_

I'd awoken to my brother shaking me the following morning. I hadn't slept very well; I was too busy kicking myself for taking so long in telling Amaya how I felt. If I'd just, not hesitated…she would know right now. Maybe, if I was lucky, she would have told me she felt the same. We could be together, and I would feel like the luckiest dwarf in Middle Earth. But no. We had to be interrupted. Again.

"Come on, Fili." Said my brother as we walked to breakfast. "Don't be so disappointed. It's not as if she _doesn't _feel the same way. You never told her. And from what you told me, she seemed quite interested as to what you had to say! Surely that means something! Maybe she already knows and is waiting for you to say something!"

"How could she know, Kili? As you are so keen to remind me, I never told her! That's the problem."

"Well, she could have figured it out! I mean, it's not as if you're subtle about anything."

"Kili, please…just drop it for now, okay?"

"Fine, fine." He held his hands up in surrender. Most of the others had already arrived to breakfast by the time we had arrived, so we took our seats in the middle of the table and loaded our plates. At least there was more than green things on the table this morning.

I was in the middle of eating a slice of toast when Amaya came in. She was laughing at something Bofur said and I couldn't help feeling jealous. I watched her as she briefly scanned the table and sat next to Bilbo. She didn't even look in my direction, and I wasn't sure whether that was deliberate or not. Tearing my toast apart, I glared at my plate. "Woah, Fili, what did the toast ever do to you?" asked Kili, looking amused.

"Nothing…"

"Seriously, you really need to tell her. No! Seriously, now." He insisted when I glared at him. "I can guarantee you'll be a lot happier if you do. Maybe…even if she still wants to only be friends. Which won't happen because anyone with eyes can tell she feels the same. But it will just feel like a load of your mind, won't it?"

"Right, yeah." I replied, not sounding at all like I agreed, which I didn't.

Deciding I wasn't in the mood for talking, I got up from the table and walked back towards my room (Amaya had already gone, and I had no idea where). Most of the elves I passed seemed quite upbeat about our arrival yesterday. Something which confused me, as surely it was well known that most dwarves hated Elves?

"Excuse me! Urm…excuse me!" I walked on, because there was no way any Elf would want to speak to me anyway. "Master Fili." Stopping, I turned around to see Amaya's maid, Gweyr. "I'm sorry, is this a bad time? I can come back…"

Seeing her dejected look, I smiled and nodded my head. "Okay, good!" Well there was a quick mood change. "Well, I just wanted to say, well…sorry, about last night. You were obviously in the middle of something important, I shouldn't have interrupted. My mother is always telling me I'm a bit hyperactive. I apologize, it won't happen again."

Feeling a bit odd at having a basic stranger apologizing to me, and feeling a little better, I gave her a nod that she seemed to accept and continued my way to my room.

I must have been in my room a couple of hours doing basically nothing before I made the decision to find Amaya. The others were probably who knows where, and I didn't really have anything much to do as I didn't know where anywhere was.

After stumbling around for a few minutes, I found myself on the edge of the training area. It seemed quite nice, and I thought to myself that I should use it from time to time. Walking forward a little further, I heard laughter coming from up ahead. Looking forward, I saw Amaya surrounded by two tall, and even I had to admit, good-looking elves. They seemed to be helping her with her archery, and I heard her squeal as she released an arrow and it hit the centre of the target. About to walk forward, I stopped dead in my tracks as she hugged the Elf to her right whispering something in his ear. I continued watching again as she pulled back and seemed to joke with them as they stood side by side with their arms crossed over their chest.

Just when they were about to walk off again, I thought that that was enough. I had felt the jealously rise up in me as I had stood there, and my thoughts immediately turned negative. _Of course she would never like me back! She'd much rather be with some Elf Lord who's much better looking and funny than I am. _

"Amaya!" I shouted, taking a deep breath to calm me down. Taking out my frustration on her would not make things in my favour, and it was her decision as to who she wants to be with. I could respect that. I would probably kill me inside, but I would respect it.

"Oh, Fili! Hi. Sorry, I didn't see you over there. Elladan was just telling me…"

"Why, Amaya, where are your manners?" said the elf who she'd referred to as Elladan. "Will you not introduce us to your friend?" I saw him smirk to his brother.

"Right…" I saw Amaya look uncomfortable for a second. "Fili, this is Elladan and his brother Elrohir. Guys, this is Fili. They're Lord Elrond's sons. They were just taking me to meet their sister if you want to come with us, Fili." She gave me a breath-taking grin that had me smiling back. This particular grin caused her to have dimples on her cheeks, which I loved, and her smile was crooked to the right.

"Urm, no, thank you. I should probably find my brother, he's Durin knows where. But I'll see you at dinner" Giving her another smile, I turned and walked away, back from where I came.

I could vaguely hear one of the elves say, "I can see why you like him.", making my chest swell with happiness for a moment.

-8-

A/N: and there we go! Rivendell, chapter one! Let me know what you think, and thank you all for the reviews!


	13. Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Thirteen

We'd been in Rivendell for about a week. Or I thought it was a week. Time seemed to work differently here. I tried to divide my time equally between the company and my new Elf friends (I'd met Arwen, and she was very nice). Unfortunately, the dwarves made this increasingly difficult. No matter how friendly the Elves were being towards them, most of the dwarves were no closer to liking them than when we'd first arrived. This made them hard to be around and even Fili was beginning to act strangely and was barely speaking. This resulted me in spending more and more time in the company of Elladan, Elrohir, Arwen and even Gweyr, who was beginning to grow on me.

Kili hung around with us from time to time, helping the Elven brothers to improve my archery. Even I was impressed on my progression. I was now shooting near enough the middle each time, and although the only bull's eye I'd managed to get so far was the one Elrohir had aimed for me, it was near enough to actually hit the target for me. Bilbo always seemed to be around as well, although he didn't really speak much, and I saw Ori from time to time writing and drawing in his journal about the going's on and people here. I'd tried asking Kili multiple times what was wrong with Fili, but each time I got the same answer.

"Just give him time. He'll tell you soon enough." But as each day past, was another day he never said a thing, and I found myself telling me to accept it. If he didn't want to tell me, then fine. I wouldn't ask.

It was at the end of what I'd been told was the ninth day of our stay. I knew that we'd probably be leaving in a day or two, and I found myself sad at that. Rivendell was a place where you could forget all of your problems. It was just…peaceful.

I'd just had a day of training with Elladan and Elrohir, so I went back to my room that night to get ready for dinner. Gweyr had washed my clothes that I'd arrived in, and she'd even been nice enough to alter them so they fitted me. That would be nice. Having travelling clothes that fitted. She'd laid out a change of clothes whenever I needed one and become quite good company to me during my stay. Tonight, I changed into a deep red coloured dress that had a flowered pattern on it in a gold coloured thread. One of the nicest so far, I thought.

Arriving in the dinner hall, I sat next to Fili and Kili. I hadn't spoken to them all day, which was quite strange. I'd barely gone a day without speaking to either of them on this journey, and I didn't like it when I didn't. I missed Fili's cheeky smiles and Kili's funny stories.

Once I sat down, I glanced around the room. Over in the far corner, I saw Gandalf talking to a woman dressed entirely in white and silver. She seemed to emit a glow and she had long blonde hair that was braided back so you could see her ears, which had a faint point to them. She was obviously an elf, and by the looks of her, an important one. By far, one of the most beautiful, unearthly people I'd ever seen.

"Good evening, Amaya." greeted Kili when I turned back to them.

"Hi Kili.. Hello Fili." I added, giving him a small smile.

"Hello, miz sanâzyung." He replied, smiling. "You look very nice tonight."

"Thanks…" I replied, giving him an odd look. However I was glad he was his usual self again. "Do you know who Gandalf's talking to?"

"No, although they've been there since we arrived. Seems important though." Said Kili. "So, Blondie." I glared at him. "What have you been up to today?"

"I've been training with Elladan and Elrohir. You know, I can actually hit near the middle of the target now without any help!"

"I'll believe that when I see it." Laughed Kili. Glaring, I turned back to the table, and loaded my plate. Since the first night, we had been getting much more of a variety of food, including (What I and the others were very thankful for) meat.

"You know, I can actually improve in things you know. I'm not entirely useless."

"No, I know that! You're great for a bit of humour. Even I have to admit you're pretty funny."

"Thanks Kili. That makes me feel loads better…" Stuffing a big bit of chicken in my mouth, I moaned at the nice taste. I mean, I'd had tasty chicken before, but this was bliss! Yum.

-8-

I'd been sitting at the table for about an hour talking to Fili and Kili, catching them up of all of the things I'd been doing at Rivendell. Although they didn't find the place too bad (they had admitted they didn't feel the same way as their uncle; they had no particular reason to as they weren't there for all the reasons Thorin said he didn't like them for), they'd mainly stuck to the same places; namely their rooms, here and the training area.

I meanwhile, had been almost everywhere. Arwen seemed to enjoy telling me the history of Middle Earth, although I didn't particularly enjoy hearing it. It wasn't that it was boring, I was just never a history person. Nevertheless, I listened and I enjoyed her company. Elladan and Elrohir took me to the waterfalls, let me explore the woods around the valley and showed me their favourite places from when they were growing up. I thought of them as my older brothers, and they had told me on the evening of my sixth day here that I was like another younger sister to them, and should not hesitate to visit them whenever I wanted.

Fili and Kili seemed to be enjoying my stories, although I saw Fili stiffen whenever I mentioned the twins' names. I was just listening to Kili tell me the story of when Bombur broke a table when he caught a sausage the other night (I'd been with Arwen and we were discussing the differences in our cultures), when I heard a voice.

"_My child, you have travelled far." _Startled, I looked around the room. No one else seemed to have heard it; so the question was, was it in my head? Was I imagining things? "_You are not imagining anything, child. But I am indeed in your head."_

"Amaya? Amaya, are you alright?" I heard Kili say. I ignored him, looking around the room. I saw the elf in the corner from before staring at me with a curious expression, but it was also like she was looking into me; into my very being and soul.

"_Come over here. We have some matters to talk about." _Pushing the bench back slightly, I excused myself from the table (receiving a concerning look from Fili and Kili) and walked over to the woman in white. She nodded in gesture for me to sit down, and I did so.

"Urm…hello." I said feebly.

"_Hello, little one." _She smiled.

"Right, okay, hi. Can I just…could you please speak out loud? I don't mean to be rude, not in the slightest, but…it's just…weird." I finished lamely, ignoring the name 'little one'. Elves, trolls, wizards, I could cope with, but people talking to me in my head was where I drew the line.

"As you wish." She replied. "My name is Galadriel. I hail from the forest of Lothlórien."

"I'm…"

"I know of you, Amaya Osbourne. Nineteen years of age. You come from a city called York, and you are unsure of why you were brought here." My mouth gaped open. How did she know? Was it her that had brought me here? "To answer your questions, I know of many things. And no, it was not I that brought you here. But listen to this: it was your fate that you should come here. It was meant to be by action of the Valar."

"So I was brought here deliberately?" I asked, unable to help myself.

Galadriel chuckled. "Yes, you were. Why do you seem so surprised?"

"Well, if I was meant to be here, that means that…I was meant to be a part of this quest, right? With the dwarves?" she nodded her head ever so slightly. "I just don't understand. I don't have anything…I mean, I have no special skills, or…"

"You underestimate yourself. You are kind, loyal and fierce of heart. And your part is still yet to play. However, I can offer you a choice."

My mind reeled. A choice? What did she mean a choice? "I have the ability to take you back to your own world if you do not feel comfortable here." I breathed deeply. Did she mean that? She could take me back? But…did I want to go back? "I will warn you, that if you go back, there is no return. It will be permanent. I will give you until the end of the night to make your decision. But." She looked intensely at me. "Choose wisely." Giving her a disbelieving look, I got up (rather shakily may I add) and was about to walk back to Fili and Kili when I thought that I should probably think about this on my own. I wouldn't want to worry them.

What should I do? I loved it here, I had to admit. I loved the people, the places, and although I'd nearly been killed twice, I found myself thinking that everything else was worth it. But…now I had the opportunity to go back. Back to where I was finally beginning to feel happy, finish my degree…But I was feeling happy here too. Could I really leave everything here, everyone?

"Amaya! Amaya!" I heard Fili shout from behind me. By now I was quite a way away from the dinner hall, in fact I had ended up in one of the gardens I had been shown by Elladan on my first day here. "Amaya, wait!" I span around as he touched my shoulder. "What's the matter? Why are you crying?" Looking confused, I brought my hand to my face and realised I was indeed crying. "Miz sanâzyung, please, tell me what is wrong."

"I…I can't…" I said, not really sure why.

"Please, tell me." Looking up into Fili's eyes, I saw an expression I'd never seen on him before. He looked helpless, and scared. Scared that what I wasn't telling him was something bad, but he felt like he could help me. Some how.

I took a deep breath. He needed to know, I thought. "Okay, well…you know I went and spoke to that elf in the corner. The woman?" He nodded, gesturing me to sit down on the edge of the stream. "She…told me something. Well, more like gave me a decision to make. And…I don't know what to do."

"What decision? I could help you."

"She told me that I had the opportunity to go back to my own world." Fili began to smile, probably to say that this was a good thing, I could have closure in that world. "Permanently." The smile vanished. "If I went back, I couldn't come back here."

Fili was silent for a minute. "But…I don't understand. You can't leave me! You can't leave. You're thinking of going?"

"I don't know, I…I just don't know Fili…" I felt myself starting to cry again.

"You can't go! I thought…I thought you were happy here. You've only just arrived!"

"Why are you saying these things, Fili?!" I shouted, standing back up. He followed, giving my a puzzled look. I saw the beginning of tears in his eyes. Did he really not want me to go that much? None the less, I couldn't stop the words coming out of my mouth. "You say I can't go, that I can't leave you, when you have barely spoken to me the entire time we've been here! Is it because you got sick of my company? You're bored of me? Is that it? Because suddenly here you are, acting as if none of that ever happened, and I'm confused! So tell me Fili, why can't I go?!"

Fili's expression looked like he was in conflict with himself before determination took over. "You want to know why you can't go?" He took a deep breath in. "Because I love you! I am in love with you, Amaya. Never think that I could be sick of you. Ever! You are the thing that I think about each time before I go to sleep and every time I wake up. But I love everything from your crooked smile to the way your eyes light up when we tell you a story that you are particularly interested in. I love how you twitch your nose when you're irritated, or how you can make anyone smile without even trying, no matter how bad the joke is. You are the best thing that has ever happened to me, and I'll be damned if I lose you now after everything that has happened! And when we arrived here, and I saw you with those two elves, I just… couldn't contain my jealously. It was there, flaring up inside me, it felt overwhelming. There they were, blatantly flirting with you, _my _One, and you didn't even realise. And I knew that it was all in good spirits, but, I just…I couldn't handle it, and I'm sorry. I really am. " My eyes began to tear up again as Fili basically began to pour his heart out to me. "Remember when we first met? You were busy talking about things that absolutely no one but you understood, and every time you smiled at me, I thought that I was the luckiest dwarf in the world, because you were smiling at _me. I _had caused that."

"Fili, I…"

"Please let me finish. Just…do you remember the conversation we had. It was about the time when you seemed shocked that dwarven women had beards." I gave a faint laugh. "I told you that dwarfs only love once. That…when you see the right person, they know it. And I know it when I look at you. That, you, Amaya Osbourne," he took hold of my hand and I noticed how his were shaking. "You, will be the only person to ever have my heart, for it is yours, now and forever." By now, Fili had tears running down his face, one by one. "Please say something." He begged, after I hadn't said anything for a while.

"I don't know what to say." I replied, trying to control the emotion in my voice. "How am I supposed to top a speech like that?"

"Just try." He begged again.

"Then…Fili, I love you too. And I know that it's no big speech or anything, but…that's how I feel." I smiled. "That felt so pathetic compared to what you said.

At that moment, Fili grinned so wide I wondered how he did it. He bent down and spun my around, his hands on my waist. "I don't care! You love me!"

"I just have one question." I said, when he put me down.

"Anything!"

"You said I was your 'One'. I don't remember you mentioning that back at Bilbo's."

"Oh, no, I didn't."

"So, what is it? What's someone's 'One'?"

"A dwarfs One is something like, what you would probably call a soul-mate. But it's much deeper than that. It is like a bond that they share, that runs so deep, you cannot live without the other. It's almost physical. You would do anything to keep them happy and safe, and it lasts forever." He thumb stroked my cheek.

"And…" I swallowed. "And that's how you feel about me?"

"Yes. And it's also what I've been trying to tell you for quite some time now, although we either get interrupted or I panic and change the subject." He grinned sheepishly.

"Well…" I smiled. "I may not be a dwarf and have this 'One' bond in respect to you, but I can tell you one thing. I feel exactly the same way." And with that, he leaned down and his lips touched mine. They were gentle against mine, and it felt like they were all that ever mattered. All that crap I'd heard back home about 'fireworks' and everything suddenly made sense. After a little while, things started to heat up. My hand came up to tangle in his hair, and his rested on my waist, pulling my body against his. His lips were more urgent and I could feel him smile through everything.

Pulling away, I grinned. "Well, that was…nice." I blushed.

"That was amazing." Smiled Fili, giving me a brief kiss. "So…" his face now looked uncertain. "Does this mean that you're not going? You're going to stay?"

"Fili, I could never leave. I mean, sure, I was considering it briefly, but deep down, this was always going to be my decision." Fili reached down to spin me around again. "Ah! I'm guessing that makes you happy?"

"The happiest dwarf in all of Middle Earth. So, would you allow me to put a courting braid in your hair?" He sounded almost shy.

"A courting braid?"

"Yes. It's typical in Dwarven culture to put a courting braid in your beloved's hair, and it would let the world know that you're mine." That I was _his_. That sounded good, I thought. Nodding, he gestured me to sit while he sat behind me. "The courting braid is like a typical braid, although it specifically goes on the left side of head framing the face." He explained. "When a dwarf gets married, an identical braid goes on the right side. I think I have a spare bead for the end somewhere…" I felt him rustle around in his pocket. "Here we are! This one is like mine, it has Durin's mark on it. It will show everyone that you are part of this family now."

It didn't take long for him to braid my hair, and I was a little surprised when he said I was required to do his. "But it will look awful! I can't braid!"

"No it won't. I trust you to make it look okay." And so for the next forty-five minutes or so, I attempted to make a braid in Fili's hair as he tried to talk me through what to do. By the end of it, I had to admit, it didn't look too bad, and I felt proud that it meant that he was now mine. I smiled. _Fili was mine_. "I told you you'd do a good job."

"That you did." I replied, turning around so I was basically sitting in his lap. "And I should thank you for that." I murmured, bringing my face closer to his. Making so my lips were only a hairs width from his, Fili's impatience got the better of him, and he wasted no time in sealing his with mine. It didn't start gentle this time, and I had to remember how to breath by the time the kiss had finished.

"You know, I could definitely get used to this, miz sanâzyung." He whispered, stroking the side of my face.

"Me too." I agreed. "And are you ever going to tell me what that means? It's frustrating!"

He laughed. "Maybe one day."

And for the rest of the night, we stayed down by the stream, not saying much, but forgetting about everything outside of us.

-8-

A/N: and they're finally together! I hope this chapter has been worth the suspense. Thank you for your reviews, and feedback is much appreciated!


	14. Chapter Fourteen

Chapter Fourteen

Early the next morning (I noticed it was still pretty dark outside), I heard a faint knocking at my door.

"Miss Amaya? Miss Amaya? Can I come in?" Realizing that it was Ori (he was one of the only ones to still call me 'miss'), I leapt out of bed and opened the door. "Sorry to wake you, but…er," he stuttered when he realised I was still in my sleeping attire. "Thorin says we are to leave early this morning." He made to leave. "Oh! And he said it was best if you don't speak to any of the Elves. He wants to keep us leaving a secret."

"Ok, thank you Ori." I smiled. He smiled back, and I saw him give a brief glance at my hair (namely my new braid) before leaving. Sighing, I went around my room packing up my things. I now had my own bag (courtesy of Arwen) that was very spacious, and I quickly got changed into the now clean clothes I had come in. (I had also been given scabbard to hold my sword) I had to admit, I was very sorry we were leaving. And a little confused on why we were doing it in secret. Maybe it was because of what Thorin had said earlier about not trusting the elves. But the thought that I wouldn't get to say goodbye to Elladan, Elrohir or Arwen was saddening. I would even miss Gweyr to a point. I decided at the last minute to write a letter, saying that I was sorry for not saying goodbye and that I would hopefully see them again soon. I really didn't want to leave without saying _something_. I was very careful to not write anything to give away what we were doing, I knew Thorin would not be impressed if he found out. I'd also made sure to visit Lady Galadriel last night before heading to bed to tell her I wanted to stay. At this, she gave me a knowing smile and wished me well. A lady of few words. She'd also told me that due to me now being here, I was the equivalent to sixty-five years old in 'dwarf years' and would now have the life-span of a dwarf as well; something that me and Fili were very happy about. I could now spend my life with Fili, and he could do the same!

Once I was ready (and looking around my room in sadness at the thought that this was probably going to be the cleanest I was going to be in a long time), I opened my door. It was just before sunrise, and it was only now that I realised that I had no idea where the others were.

"Good morning, miz sanâzyung." I heard behind me. Smiling, I turned around and saw Fili leaning against the wall. "I hope you slept well."

"Of course." I replied, kissing him. "How long have you been waiting here?"

"Only a few minutes." Taking my hand, he began to lead me down the corridors. "We're meeting on a path that leads out of the valley."

"Why are we leaving so early, anyway?" I asked, yawning.

"Uncle thinks that the Elves will try to stop our quest. They showed Lord Elrond the map last night, so he thinks that it's best that we leave."

"Oh, well, I could have had some warning." I huffed. "I didn't get to bed until late because a certain dwarf was keeping me up." I smirked.

"Well, I'm sure he'll try to keep that from happening again." He wrapped his arm around my waist as we walked.

"He better." We walked in silence for a few more seconds before we both burst out laughing.

"And what are you two laughing about, may I ask?" asked Kili, as we arrived at the meeting spot.

"Oh, nothing much. I just told him a really funny joke, that's all. You know, using that humour that I seem to have." I replied.

"Oh, is that what you were doing? You see, I would have thought it had something to do with the matching braids that you two seem to be wearing." My eyes widened. Okay, I figured that as soon as the other dwarves saw the braids, they would know what had happened and obviously, they would know what they meant, but it was far too early in the day for this. "I knew this would happen! Fili finally found the guts to tell you!" I exchanged a look with Fili. I didn't really plan on telling the others what had gone on between me and the Lady Galadriel, they didn't need to know. "How did it happen?!"

"Kili, you sound like a teenage girl." I giggled.

"Come on Blondie…I want to know how my future sister came into the family!"

"It's nothing." I replied, blushing at the words 'future sister'. "We kind of…got into an argument of some sorts, and he told me. That's it, end of story."

"Awww, come on…"

"Move out!" shouted Thorin, who was near the front of the company. "Amaya, can I speak with you, please?" Having a faint idea on what this could be about, I dodged the others on my way to the front.

"Hi, Thorin. What's up?" I asked, absentmindedly twisting my new braid around my finger.

"I see you and Fili have finally sorted things out." He smiled.

"Yeah, we…wait, you knew too?" Seriously, had I really been that oblivious?

"Of course I knew. He is my nephew. It was pretty obvious." He smirked. "But I needed to speak to you in particular."

"Why? Did I do something wrong?"

"No, nothing like that. I just wish for you to know what you're getting yourself in to." I frowned. I'm sure not this conversation was going in a direction I liked; that, and I was focusing on my footing as we were walking on the side of a cliff. "Listen to me." He was now keeping his voice down, no doubt to keep this conversation private. "Fili is a prince, as you well know; but he is also the heir. I need you to know that he will have duties to perform, especially when he becomes king; he will be required to go on journey's to other kingdoms, he may even need to ride to war if necessary, and I don't want you to go into that with your eyes shut."

I remained silent for a while. "Well, I will admit, those things didn't really occur to me. But, I don't care. Well, obviously I do care, but…I understand is what I'm trying to say. And those things don't change anything. I love him, and I'll support him in anything that he does." I said with conviction. "Mostly." I muttered under my breath. Obviously there were points where I would draw the line, like with every person.

"Then I give you my blessing." Said Thorin.

"Your blessing?"

"Like I said, Fili's my nephew. And…I am beginning to think of you as a daughter, in so many words." I swear I could see him blushing under his beard at this, but he'd chosen this time to bow his head, so I wasn't sure. "So, I give you my blessing." Grinning, I tackled Thorin into an awkward hug as we were still walking.

"Thank you."

Still grinning, I stopped and allowed the others to pass until Fili came. "What did uncle want to talk to you about?" he asked, his hand automatically seeking mine (which, I won't lie, caused me to internally squeal).

"Nothing much, don't worry about it. But he did basically say that he approves, which is good. Of us, I mean."

"Of course he did. How could he not?" joked Fili. "Watch your step here." He warned, as the path started to slope downwards.

-8-

We'd left the cliff face near Rivendell pretty quickly before we reached the Misty Mountains. And 'Misty' was right; you could barely see anywhere in the distance and it was a bit unnerving. The walkway we were standing on had also got a lot narrower, and I made sure to stay in between Fili and Kili, always keeping hold of Fili's hand. I had to commend him on his strength; I was squeezing it pretty tight and he hadn't complained once.

We'd been on the mountains for about three days now, and although I was never one to complain (much), I found myself wishing for warmth an awful lot. But then again, who wouldn't when they were stuck on a freezing cold rock for days? Not much had happened either. It was either too windy to hear each other, or it was night and everyone was sleeping. Conversation was scarce. I had taken to huddling close to Fili as often as I could, not that either of us were complaining. Hiking through mountains was not particularly nice, but it certainly helped me become a lot closer to Fili in our relationship.

This particular day (well, it was more like evening if I'm being honest), it was chucking it down with rain. My clothes were soaked to the skin, and my hand kept slipping out of Fili's. He had made sure to stay behind me; he said it was to ensure that he could constantly look out for me and make sure I was safe and basically didn't fall, which I wasn't arguing with. I'd slipped more than once, and falling to my death was not on my to-do list.

I jumped as a massive bolt or lightning flashed across the sky and thunder roared in my ears. Squeezing my eyes shut, I clutched Fili's hand even tighter.

"Amaya, your lips are turning blue." He said, sounding worried.

"Yeah, well. It's a bit cold." I replied, now fully aware of my shivering.

"We need to get off the mountain!" yelled Fili as everyone came to a stand-still, starting to breath on me to try and warm me up.

"Hold on!" shouted Thorin, as more thunder and lightening flew overhead. "We must find shelter!"

"Watch out!" roared Dwalin. I looked up to where he was looking to see a massive boulder hurtle through the air towards us. Whimpering, I slammed myself into the wall of the cliff face behind me as it hit the wall above us.

"This is no thunderstorm; it's a thunder battle! Look!" cried Balin. I looked forward again (with immense difficulty as my hair flew everywhere from the wind) to see what looked like a gigantic stone man rip himself out of the mountain and tear off another bit of it to throw like it was nothing.

"Well bless me," said Bofur. "The legends are true. Giants; Stone Giants!"

"Great!" I yelled. "Because knowing their names will make me feel a lot better when they blast us off of this bloody mountain!" I felt Fili stiffen at the side of me at my words.

"Take cover. You'll fall!"

"What's happening?" asked Kili. I breathed deeply. The Stone Giants were now in the middle of a huge battle, throwing huge boulders at each other. I let go of Fili's hand so we could both cling onto the mountain better, but this did not make me feel any better whatsoever. The mountain side was vibrating with every rock thrown, and it became harder and harder to keep upright.

Unfortunately, this was now the least of our worries. Looking down, I saw the ground between me and Fili begin to crack and eventually split. Of course, we would be on a bit of living stone. And it would be right in the middle of its legs.

"No!" I screamed. "Fili!" I tried to leap over onto the other side, but Kili now had a firm grasp on my upper arm, stopping me from moving. "Fili!"

"Amaya, Amaya. Stop! Come on!" urged Kili.

"Amaya!" I heard Fili scream. "Kili! Amaya!" Now I was beyond terrified. Fili was all the way on the other leg, I could only get a faint glimpse of him as he flew by. And of course I trusted Kili (and the others when I thought about it) with my life, it wasn't the same as when I was with Fili. He had a way of comforting me no matter the situation. On one of the times I saw him, I saw him and the others leap onto a normal piece of mountain and were now staring at us in horror, and it took me a moment to figure out why. The giant who we were standing on had evidentially lost the fight, and we were now falling with increasing speed towards a cliff. Face first. I wished I'd kept my eyes shut, watching the rock come closer and closer was terrifying. But I did have one positive thought: at least Fili was safe.

"Amaya!" I heard Kili scream. "Come on, we can jump. Jump onto the ledge there…any second now." And with that, as we were only feet away from being crushed against a wall, I jumped. I felt reassured that Kili had my hand throughout the entirety of it, and when I actually felt solid ground under my feet, I had never felt so relieved. In the distance I could hear the others shouting.

"No! No! Kili!" shouted Thorin.

"Amaya! Amaya!" cried Fili, and my heart broke. The others… they probably thought we were all dead. I didn't know how I'd feel if the situation was reversed.

"We're alright!" yelled Balin, as the others ran around the corner towards us. "We're alive!"

I sighed in relief as Kili let go of my hand to hug his Uncle. "Amaya!" I briefly heard before I was enveloped in a tight, bone-breaking hug. "Thank the gods, you're okay. I thought I'd lost you."

"Fili, I'm fine." I said, laughing a little out of relief. "Look at me, I'm all in one piece."

"I am never letting you go again." He said, pulling back and piercing me with a determined gaze. "Ever."

"And I wouldn't want you to." I assured him.

"Where's Bilbo?" asked Bofur, making me pull away and look around. "Where's the Hobbit?"

"Bilbo?" I shouted, not even noticing he was missing. What a good friend I was…but the again, I was hanging on for my life. "Bilbo!" From the corner of my eye I saw Fili embrace his brother in relief before heading back over to me.

"There!" pointed Ori, looking over the side of the cliff. Running forward, I looking over seeing Bilbo clinging onto the side of the mountain with everything he had. Fully preparing to go and help him up, Fili must have realised what I was going to do and held me firmly by the waist.

"The others are helping him. Stay here." He all but ordered. Knowing I was in no place to argue with him (I couldn't blame him for being protective. He thought I'd died today and to have me jump down the side of a cliff obviously wasn't something he wanted me doing), I stood by and watched as Ori tried to pull Bilbo up to no avail. Thorin, with a grace I didn't know he possessed, then swung down the side and boosted the Hobbit up to safety before nearly falling himself if it wasn't for Dwalin helping him back up.

"I thought we'd lost our burglar." Said Dwalin, breathing deeply.

"He's been lost ever since he left home." Snapped Thorin. "He should never have come. He has no place amongst us. Dwalin!" I watched as he and Dwalin went off ahead to search for what I hoped was shelter. The adrenaline of the day was wearing off, and I was soon very cold and shivering again.

"Bilbo." I said, walking over to the Hobbit, Fili in tow. Obviously he would not be leaving me alone for a long while. Bilbo looked up. I could tell Thorin's words stung him, and he was trying to act strong. He shouldn't have to, I thought. "You know he didn't mean it. He was just relieved to see everyone was okay…"

"No." he interrupted. "He was right, but it's okay. It's not something I didn't already know." He sighed. "I'm fine. You go, talk to Fili. Congratulations by the way, Ori told me. About you two being together." Staring down at the ground awkwardly, Bilbo shuffled away.

"Come on. Uncle and Dwalin have found a cave we can stay in." said Fili, pulling me over.

"It looks safe enough." Said Dwalin as we walked in.

"Search to the back; caves in mountains are seldom unoccupied." Instructed Thorin.

"There's nothing here."

"Right then." Said Gloin, dropping a bundle of wood to the floor. "Let's get a fire started."

"No. No fires, not in this place. Get some sleep. We start at first light."

"We were to wait in the mountains until Gandalf joined us. That was the plan." Said Balin.

"Plans change. Bofur, take the first watch."

I sighed in relief as me and Fili walked to the back of the cave well away from the wind and rain outside. Settling down next to the cave wall, I smiled wearily. "Never a dull day, huh?" I said.

"Here." Said Fili, ignoring my comment. "Take my coat, you're freezing." Shrugging his coat off and ignoring my comments that he would get cold, he wrapped it around my shoulders ushering me to lie down.

"Fili, come on, I'm fine. I've stopped shivering now."

"I know you're fine." He replied, lying down next to me. "But…I'm just trying to look after you. I told you yesterday that a dwarf would do anything to keep his One safe, and that's getting harder and harder to do on this journey, so just… let me do this." Nodding, I leant my head on Fili's chest, his heartbeat lulling me into a deep and much needed sleep.

-8-

A/N: and another chapter finished! I need to say that I have work experience this week so updates may not be as frequent as they are now.

Please let me know any ideas you have in regards to the story and any feedback is welcome!


	15. Chapter Fifteen

Chapter Fifteen

A few hours later, I was awoken to the sound of muttering coming from near the front of the cave. Cracking my eyes open, I saw Bilbo standing nearby talking to Bofur. Moving very slowly so as to not wake Fili, I stood up. Fili moaned and turned in his sleep as if he sensed I was missing (which he probably did), so I hurriedly took off his coat he'd given me and curled it up in his arms. It seemed to do the trick and he soon settled down again.

Shuffling over to them, I listened to what they were saying.

"Where do you think you're going?" asked Bofur.

"I could ask him the same thing." I added, stepping forward to announce my presence as I saw Bilbo inching to the mouth of the cave.

Bilbo looked down. "Back to Rivendell." He muttered.

"Bilbo, no!"

"No, no, you can't turn back now." said Bofur. "You're part of the company. You're one of us. Both of you are!" he said, looking at me as well.

"I'm not though, am I? Thorin said I never should have come, and he was right. I'm not a Took, I'm a Baggins, I don't know what I was thinking. I never should have run out my door."

"Bilbo." I tried. "I know how you feel. I felt the same. But it gets better." Bilbo only shook his head.

"No, Amaya, you don't know how I feel. Thorin and Kili thinks of you as family, and you have Fili. I don't have anyone."

"You're homesick; I understand." Said Bofur, softly.

"No, you don't, you don't understand! None of you do- you're dwarves. You're used to…to this life, to living on the road, never settling in one place, not belonging anywhere."

"Bilbo!" I scolded, shocked that he could say such a thing, and still hurt that he thought he 'didn't have anyone'. I looked at Bofur to see him swallow thickly.

"I am sorry, I didn't…"

"No, you're right." Said Bofur, quietly. "We don't belong anywhere. I wish you all the luck in the world. I really do."

"Bilbo, don't go." I tried again.

"I'm sorry, Amaya." I shook my head and turned my back on him, disappointed that he was just giving up.

Hearing his footsteps, I wasn't expecting Bofur to ask, "What's that?" Turning back around, I looked towards Bilbo to see him pull his sword out of his sheath to reveal that it was glowing a bright blue. The panicked look on Bilbo's face did nothing to assure me that this was a good thing, but before I could make my way back to Fili, Thorin was already shouting, "Wake up. Wake up!" Looks like he heard everything we were saying. That wouldn't bode well for Bilbo…

Looking around in panic, I could barely react before the floor of the cave collapsed downwards, sending us all falling down a huge tunnel. The fall itself was relatively quick, and it was only a few seconds later that we all landed with a huge thud on the ground. Fortunately for me, I was near the top of the pile, and was squishing Ori and Gloin underneath me. Before I had the chance to apologise (although I don't think they really noticed I was there after the initial shock of falling while waking up in the process), I was suddenly gripped from under the arms and dragged away.

Thinking it was one of the dwarves I allowed it until I looked down at one of the arms grabbing me and realizing that the dwarves would never be this rough with me. The arms holding me were scabby, a sickly pale green-grey colour and covered in warts. Looking around, I now saw that these creatures had grabbed every member of the company except (I was partly relieved to see) Bilbo. In fact, Bilbo was now nowhere in sight as we were dragged off. Not that I had any time to dwell on that.

Now panicking a lot (my breathing had become very rapid) I elbowed the two creatures holding me in the face, and after hearing them squeal in pain (a horrible sound that seemed to make me shiver), I ran back to find Fili. They mustn't have expected me to fight back. I'd heard Fili screaming my name ever since we'd fallen and he was being restrained by three of the creatures. Once he saw me running back, he tried to shake them all off. But they were too strong for him, and as I was recaptured by them again, he never stopped trying to get free.

I had long since stopped struggling as we were led down a long series of tunnels and wooden bridges. It was probably best to save my energy. Unfortunately this did not last long as I felt the creatures' hands start to wander.

"Oy!" I yelled, stamping hard on its foot. "Keep your hands to yourself!"

"Get your filthy hands off of her!" I heard Fili scream. At these words, we were led into a huge cavern, and looking forward, I saw a huge…_thing_, sitting on what I assumed was supposed to be a throne. It was by far, the ugliest thing I had ever seen in my life, was covered in warts, and was incredibly fat; like its chins had chins. I think the words clinically obese came to mind at this moment.

Hissing as a creature ripped my sword away from me and threw it in a pile, we were herded into a group in front of the throne. "What the hell are these things?" I asked the dwarves around me.

"Goblins." Spat out Dwalin, who was closest, his face filled with hate. Fili, who had been near the back of the group, had shoved and pushed his way forward once we had stopped so he was now next to me.

"Stay close to me." He whispered, securing my hand in his. The goblins had moved back from us now; they must have been pretty confident that there was no chance we would escape. Not a reassuring thought. Although I still saw them giving me hungry looks; I didn't want to think about the last time they'd probably seen a woman.

"Gladly." I whispered back, moving closer to his side.

"Who would be so bold as to come armed into my kingdom?" boomed the huge goblin, who was now stepping down his throne by using smaller goblins as footsteps. "Spies? Thieves? Assassins?"

"Dwarves, your malevolence." Squawked a goblin near the front.

"Dwarves?"

"We found them on the front porch." He grinned.

"Well, don't just stand there; search them! Every crack, every crevice!"

Trying desperately to try and kick them off as they grabbed at every bit of clothing they could, I shrieked when one of them pulled my hair. Roaring, Fili launched himself at it only to be roughly shoved to the ground himself.

"Wait!" shouted the Great Goblin. "What do we have here?" I could feel his eyes on me as my own welled up with tears. I tried desperately to push them back. "Bring the woman to me." Uselessly pushing and kicking any goblin that came within my reach, I was dragged (rather roughly may I add) over to the Great Goblin and pushed down onto my knees. I could still hear Fili struggling to get free behind me. "Aren't you a pretty one?" he said, mockingly.

Gritting my teeth, I decided that if I was going to die in this place, I was going to die with dignity. Raising my head, I gave as defiant of an expression as I could given the situation. "So, tell me." It continued. "What are you and your…" he gave a cruel look over to the others. "Company, doing in these parts?" I remained silent, much to his annoyance. "Perhaps there is a way we can loosen your tongue." Twisting my body away as he reached out towards me, I heard Fili shout,

"Don't you dare touch her!"

Freezing, the Great Goblin got a look of realization upon his face. "Well, well, well. What do we have here? A dwarf and his little girlfriend." He mocked. Giving a brief signal to another goblin, I screamed partly in pain and partly in shock as I was struck in the back by a whip. "How about this, dwarf: You tell me what you and your friends are doing here, and I won't lay another finger on this one here. It would be a terrible pity to spoil her, but if you refuse to speak…" The whip struck me again, causing me to whimper. "…then this will continue to happen."

I turned my head towards the company, mouthing, "Don't say anything. I'll be okay." Fili looked absolutely livid; combined with a look of horror and a few tears and my mood dropped further.

"So, what are you doing in these parts?" he repeated. Hearing silence, I was glad they didn't say anything. However, this gladness didn't last for long as my back was struck again.

"Fili, stop!" I heard Thorin yell. What was Fili doing? "Wait!" Twisting my body around, I saw Thorin step out from the crowd, facing the Great Goblin.  
"Well, well, well, look who it is. Thorin son of Thrain, son of Thror; King under the Mountain." He bowed mockingly. "Oh, but I'm forgetting, you don't have a mountain. And you're not a king. Which makes you nobody, really."

Thorin knelt down next to me. I had to commend him on not retaliating. "Go back to Fili." He muttered. Not needing to be told twice, I stood up shakily and staggered back to Fili who immediately wrapped his arms around me, being careful to not make the pain on my back any worse.

"I know someone who would pay a pretty price for your head." The Great Goblin continued, now oblivious to my movement. "Just the head, nothing attached. Perhaps you know of whom I speak, an old enemy of yours. A Pale Orc astride a White Warg."

"Azog the Defiler was destroyed." Said Thorin, sounding adamant. "He was slain in battle long ago."

"So you think his defiling days are done, do you?" He turned to a tiny goblin sitting in a small basket. "Send word to the Pale Orc; tell him I have found his prize."

Gulping, and seeing no way out of this, I couldn't help the few tears that fell down my face.

"Hey. Come on now." Said Fili, wiping them away but not being able to stop his own. "We're going to be okay." Even he didn't sound too sure.

"How?" I replied. "Fili, how are we going to get out of this one?"

"I…don't know…"

"It's not fair."

"What do you mean?"

I sniffed. "We've only just got together…a few days ago. I thought…you know, when we were on the mountains when I went to sleep at night…I thought of all the things we could have in the future. And now, that will never happen…"

"What did you think about?" Fili asked, a small smile on his face.

"Well…we lived in Erebor. Kili, Thorin and your mother was there. We would get married, but it wouldn't be a huge wedding. We'd have our first dance at the after party and I would constantly stand on your toes because I never learnt how to properly dance."

Fili chuckled. "That sounds perfect."

"And then maybe a couple of years later, we'd have a mini Fili running around causing mischief; Kili would help him with that and we'd constantly tell him to stop but he never would."

"A think a mini Amaya would be better. A beautiful girl just like her mother." Giving a teary laugh, I nodded.

"That would be nice."

"How's your back?" he asked, changing the subject and turning to look.

"It's fine." I lied. No doubt he was blaming himself to this happening to me. He was bad enough when we were captured by the trolls, and I had no injury at all then. Now, my back felt like hell, and I was absolutely terrified. Yep, he was going to beat himself up for this.

"No, it's not. Miz sanâzyung, I'm sorry, I should have said someth…"

"Fili, my love." I stroked his face. "This isn't your fault. I told you not to say anything. And…" I gulped. "…if I die today, at least it will be by your side."

"What did you call me?" he asked, smiling tenderly.

"My love." I replied, looking down blushing.

"Well, _my love_." He tilted my chin up. "I promise you, I am getting you out of here."

-8-

"Bones will be shattered, necks will be wrung! You'll be beaten and battered, from racks you'll be hung. You will lie down here and never be found, down in the deep of Goblin-town!" Sung the Great-Goblin a while later.

"Oh my God." I winced. "He wouldn't have got past the auditions on the X Factor." The others gave me a strange look. "Not that I watch it. Obviously."

Knowing when to shut up (that and I was beginning to feel the pain in my back now I'd stopped talking to Fili, who had distracted me from it for a little while), I watched as the goblins riffled through all of our weapons, not liking when they roughly pulled my sword out of its scabbard and tossed it onto the floor with no care when it proved to be of no interest. However, things certainly turned interesting when one goblin pulled out Thorin's sword, throwing it to the floor and cowering with fear.

"I know that sword!" shrieked the Great Goblin. "It is the Goblin-Cleaver, the Biter, the blade that sliced a thousand necks." As he spoke, the other goblins began to whip us without mercy. As soon as this started, Fili had pushed me behind him into the middle of the group along with Ori (I'd learnt that his brothers were very protective) and was taking the majority of the hits. "Slash them! Beat them! Kill them! Kill them all! Cut off his head!"

Able to see through gaps past the others, I saw them slam Thorin to the ground and pull out a knife to behead him. About to push through the others to help him, I was knocked off of my feet as a huge explosion of bright white light shone through the cave.

Rolling off of the person I had fallen off (Bifur), I squinted my eyes up to the source of the light to see a silhouette of Gandalf, staff and sword in hand.

"Take up arms. Fight. Fight!" he bellowed, leaving no room for argument.

"He wields the Foe-Hammer, the Beater, bright as daylight!" cried the Great Goblin. What a drama queen... Pulling myself up on my feet, I ran over to the pile of weapons and picked mine up from where it had been thrown.

"Follow me! Quick! Run!" I quickly followed after Gandalf, mentally sighing in relief as I saw Fili at the side of me killing any goblins that tried to attack me. Seeing him now, I saw a look that I had never seen before on him. His face was determined, angry and focused as he swung his swords at the goblins. I noticed that he kept glancing my way from time to time, and as we continued running along different passageways, I began to think, maybe we could get out of this one. We'd done it enough times already.

-8-

A/N: so, next chapter is up! It's not very long and I'm not keen on the ending, but I didn't want it to get too long so I decided to split it into two chapters. My work experience is nearly done, but I have exam results tomorrow, so again, it may be a slightly longer wait for the next chapter, so bare with me!

Thank you for all the reviews and comments! It keeps me writing!


	16. Chapter Sixteen

Chapter Sixteen

Running for my life down dark, smelly tunnels with a back covered in cuts from the whips was not an easy thing to do, let me tell you that. I wasn't a bad runner, not at all, but I was quickly running out of energy and I had to try and control my breathing to make it easier. Fili stayed by my side the entire time; something that reassured me more than anything else.

"Quickly!" urged Gandalf, stopping briefly to check the company was still together.

"Post!" shouted Dwalin, seeing several goblins running at us from in front. At his order, he and the others cut a guardrail post down from the side of the path and held it in front of all of us like a huge spear-like weapon. "Charge!" Running behind them, they ran forward at the oncoming goblins, knocking them to the side and over the rails (that were very badly made and served little to no purpose) when they were hit.

The rail now no more use (the other goblins had seen what they were doing, and were moving in more to the side of us now), the dwarves dropped it and began attacking once more with their own weapons. Pulling out my own sword, I shakily held it in front of me, at least prepared to try and defend myself. Fili was trying his hardest, but there was just too many of them.

Seeing a goblin try and attack me from the side, I stopped and held my ground. It sneered at me, obviously thinking that I couldn't defend myself, and I wasted no time in cutting it across the chest, causing it to fall over the rail. Shocked at what I had done (honestly, it was a relief that I now knew I could do it), I quickly moved to catch up with the others, attacking any goblins that came within my reach. I found that when I had done it once, it became easier and I thought to myself that if I didn't defend myself, these things would have no problem in killing me (or capturing me and doing God only knows what from what the Great Goblin was saying earlier).

"Cut the ropes!" I heard Thorin yell. Looking around to see what he was talking about, I was surprised to see goblins swinging at us on ropes from higher levels. Cutting any ropes that I saw, I watched as goblins fell continuously into the depths below.

Running through yet more tunnels and over more bridges, I lost count of how long we'd been down here. It felts like hours and hours, and properly thinking about it, it probably had been. I quickly had to move out of the way as I saw Kili and some others run holding out a ladder in front of them, causing goblins to either be knocked to the side or run away from it, not noticing that a large part of the path had disappeared and therefore running over the side.

I was wondering how _we _were going to get across, when the dwarves threw the ladder on to the ground so it acted like a bridge for us to run over. As no goblins were within my reach, I held my sword in one hand and reached out to hold Fili's in the other. My balance was never really very good, and running across a thin ladder probably wouldn't have ended well for me.

Fili squeezed my hand as we crossed, and soon enough, we were running for our lives again.

"Quickly!" shouted Gandalf. Moaning and muttering to myself about how this was all probably much easier for him with his very long legs, I nonetheless followed his instruction and sped up, pushing my legs to go faster. We got onto a part of the path that was suspended from ropes from above, and slicing some ropes, the pathway swung away from the rest of the path and came to the other side.  
"Jump!" yelled Thorin. Being near the front, I had no trouble in leaping off the platform with Fili before it swung back the other way. Unfortunately, some of the others were not so lucky, and the path swung back towards the goblins who leapt on. Swinging back towards us again, the others managed to jump next to us and cut the ropes sending the piece of path to fall down before the goblins could follow.

We ran and ran and ran further and further (part of the way, Gandalf caused a massive boulder to roll in front of us, flattening anything that was ahead) until a point where we were all crossing a bridge when the Great Goblin crashed up from underneath. Quite a slick move considering its size, I thought.

"You thought you could escape me?" it laughed, causing us all to stop in our tracks. Still being next to Fili, I leant into his body so he could wrap his arm around me. I wasn't going anywhere near that creature. "What are you going to do now, wizard?" Gandalf leapt forward with quite a bit of grace I didn't know he had, and struck the great goblin in the eye with his staff. He then sliced his belly with his sword, making the great goblin fall to its knees. "That'll do it." Just to make sure it was finished, Gandalf sliced the great goblin's neck, causing it to fall down dead.

Unfortunately, its weight was so much that it caused the bridge to collapse. Still holding onto Fili, I screamed as we fell down along with the others, and groaned as I landed on a rather pointy bit of wood. That would definitely bruise later on. Along with my back, I was in for a very rough next few days.

"Well that could have been worse." Joked Bofur. However, he had spoken too soon, as the body of the great goblin landed on top of everyone, squishing us further.

"You've got to be joking!" exclaimed Dwalin.

"Amaya? Are you alright?" asked Fili, who was on top of me. Not that I was complaining about that. It was a rather pleasant view, if I'm being honest.

"I'm fine. But I am going to ache later." I replied. Fili furrowed his eyebrows, obviously not pleased with my answer but probably expecting it after what had happened. Reaching his hand up to slowly stroke my face, he brought it back down to move various pieces of wood and bridge. "Can you get out now?"

Swinging my legs around with some difficulty, I was able to get them free. "I think so. You're going to have to get out first though." I grinned. "You're in quite an awkward place." I saw Fili blush.

"Oh, sorry. I just…fell here." He stuttered, moving out of the heap while trying to avoid squishing me further. "Here." He held his hand out for me as I climbed out after him.

"Gandalf!" I heard Kili say, sounding worried.

"There's too many! We can't fight then." Said Dwalin. Looking to where they were facing, I saw hundred upon hundreds of goblins all running down towards us. Well damn.

"Only one thing will save us." Said Gandalf. "Daylight! Come on! Here, on your feet!" Groaning again (my back was beginning to throb painfully, particularly after the fall), I retook Fili's hand and ran.

-8-

It was only about fifteen minutes of running when we reached daylight. I had never been so happy to see it, and I knew that we were finally safe. For now anyway.

"Five, six, seven, eight…Bifur, Bofur, that's ten…Kili, Fili, Amaya…that's thirteen…and Bombur- that makes fourteen. Where's Bilbo? Where is our hobbit? Where is our hobbit?!" Asked Gandalf, frantically. I looked around. I knew I hadn't seen him when we were captured, but I thought that that was because he was so small, and the others were concealing him. But where was he now, then? Did the goblins have him? Was he still trapped in that awful cave, alone? Perhaps he was already dead! No, I couldn't think like that. Bilbo was strong, even if he didn't know it himself yet.

"Curse the halfling!" growled Dwalin. "Now he's lost?!"

"I thought he was with Dori!" said Gloin.

"Don't blame me!"

"We need to go back and find him!" I exclaimed, being held back by Fili as I made to go forward, but starting to stumble.

"Well, where did you last see him?" Gandalf asked Dori, who gave a panicked look at the wizard.

"I think I saw him slip away." Answered Nori. "When they first collared us."

"What happened exactly? Tell me!"

"I'll tell you what happened." Inputted Thorin, a scowl on his face. "Master Baggins saw his chance and he took it! He's thought of nothing but his soft bed and his warm hearth since he first stepped out of his door! We will not be seeing our Hobbit again. He is long gone."

My mouth gaped open. I thought what Thorin said on the mountain was only a spur of the moment thing. He obviously remembered what Bilbo had said in the cave last night when he was trying to leave. "Thorin! How can you say that?" I asked. Thorin, who at least had the grace to look a little apologetic to me, turned away.

"No, he isn't." a voice squeaked from nearby. I watched as Bilbo stepped out from behind a tree, looking rather sheepish.

"Bilbo Baggins! I've never been so glad to see anyone in my life!" exclaimed Gandalf. Stepping out of Fili's grasp, I walked forward and pulled Bilbo into a hug, whispering that I was glad he had come back.

"Bilbo! We'd given you up!" said Kili.

"How on earth did you get past the goblins?" asked Fili, wrapping his arms around me again. Damn protective dwarf (not that that I was complaining).

"How indeed." Added Dwalin, suspiciously. I watched as Bilbo shuffled from foot to foot looking rather awkward. What was he hiding? Deep in my memory, from what I remembered about people telling me about the books, something important had happened around about now that involved Bilbo, but I couldn't for the life of me remember what. I barely knew the storyline in the first place (and most of what I knew was in Lord of the Rings, which I was pretty sure was set around 70 years later), but now even the fragments that I had were beginning to fade away completely.

"Well, what does it matter?" asked Gandalf. "He's back!"

"It matters." Said Thorin, stepping up. "I want to know: why _did_ you come back?"

"Look." Replied Bilbo. "I know you doubt me, I know you always have. And you're right. I often think of Bag End. I miss my books. And my armchair. And my garden. See, that's where I belong. That's home. And that's why I came back, cause you don't have one. A home. It was taken from you. But I will help you take it back if I can."

"Bilbo, that was beautiful." I said, putting a hand on my heart. "Seriously, great speech. I'm touched." Bilbo blushed, while the others laughed and greeted him.

"Yes well, we better move away from this place." Said Thorin. "The more distance we have between us and here the better."

We didn't really go that far if I'm being honest. We walked for about an hour, and from what Kili told me, when we stopped it was around mid-afternoon. Having no watch was a pain in the arse. Having no packs or bags or anything (I'd now lost almost everything to do with my home as my bag full of my old clothes were still in the goblins caves; my earrings were the only thing left), Thorin ordered Kili and Bofur to scout around for any food that they could gather as we were all starving.

They came back rather quickly with a few rabbits and various roots and herbs. However, I would probably eat anything I was so hungry.

"Amaya." called Fili, who had been talking to his brother as I was catching up with Bilbo. "Come here. We need to tend to your back." Nodding, I walked over to him, and gave him a confused look when he led me over behind some trees away from the others. "You'll, er…" he coughed. "You'll need to take your shirt off so I can…er, apply this salve. Oin made it, it should help prevent infection and help it heal. But I didn't want the others to…see you…"

"Fili." I stroked his cheek. "It's fine, honestly." I smiled inwardly at his awkward behaviour. It was cute. Pulling my shirt off, I turned around and took of my bra (although the dresses had good support here, the shirt was designed for a man, and had no support. And this was my favourite bra; no way was I throwing it away).

I heard Fili's breath hitch before he cleared his throat. "It may sting a little." He warned, starting to apply it with a feather light touch to ensure that he caused me no more pain. "Is this okay?"

"It's fine." Surprisingly, even though I was half naked, I didn't feel particularly awkward. Maybe it was the fact that I knew I would probably be spending the rest of my life with the dwarf behind me, but I didn't mind in the slightest. I could tell Fili was tense though; obviously this was something very intimate to him.

After a few minutes, the salve did start to sting, but I tried to ignore it and knew that this probably meant that it was working. "There." Said Fili, moving his hands from the bottom of my back. "Done. You should probably let it dry for a while. And I don't think the food's ready yet, so we have time."

Nodding, I turned around so I was basically straddling his lap and smiled. "Thank you." I said, tracing his face with the side of my hand. I saw him give a glance down at my chest and swallow thickly. "If I'm making you uncomfortable, I can turn around again."

"No…no…it's fine…it's just, uh…you're beautiful." He smiled shyly. "And I can't believe that you're mine." Leaning forward, he leant his forehead against mine, running his hands down the sides of my body. "Stunning." He whispered, before his lips met mine. This kiss was different to all the others; it was filled with a longing, and portrayed so many feelings I couldn't focus on all of them. The feel of his lips against mine made me feel limp, and I had to wrap my arms around his neck and press my chest against his to stay upright. I felt him bite gently on my lower lip, and I opened my mouth letting his tongue wander. Honestly, I'd never done anything like this before, but it felt amazing. A few hours ago, I thought we were going to die; this was heaven. Our lips glided over each others as his tongue explored my mouth, and soon I had to pull away due to lack of breath.

Breathing heavily, I gave a shaky laugh. "Wow…that was definitely…"

"Amazing." Fili finished, licking his lips. I laughed again and nodded, giving him a quick kiss before standing up off of his lap and moving to cover my chest with my arms.

"Do you think it's alright to put my shirt back on?" I asked him, trying not to look at the bulge in his trousers that I had felt a minute ago while on his lap. Honestly, it was a bit distracting, and I had to try hard to think of something else before I jumped him, which was rather tempting I'll have to admit.

"Turn around." He said, running his hand down my back. "It feels fine. Here." Reaching out and grabbing my clothes, I quickly pulled them on when he turned around, and taking each others hands, we walked back towards the others. I only hoped I wasn't blushing too much.

-8-

Important A/N: so here is another chapter! My exam results were good, so take this as a celebration chapter of sorts.

I was also wanting to hear your opinions on where the story is going. I've been thinking a lot of whether or not Fili (and maybe Amaya?) is going to die at the end, so let me know on that, and on whether to boost the story to an M rating? I'd love to hear your opinions!

Updating will hopefully be more frequent now I've finished work experience, so until next time!


	17. Chapter Seventeen

Chapter Seventeen

When we had walked the short distance back to camp, the food was ready. It wasn't much: rabbit and various other things that they had managed to find. I was impressed that they had found all that they did. I would have found the odd berry that would probably turn out to be poisonous. My back was still vaguely stinging, but not as much as before, and I quickly thanked Oin for making the salve as I passed him to sit down on a nearby log with Fili.

Kili, who came to join us, was smirking and wiggling his eyebrows up and down, obviously knowing what me and Fili had been doing. Idiot.

"Looking a bit red there, Blondie." He said, chuckling to himself.

"Yeah, well…" I cleared my throat. "We have just done an awful lot of running."

"Are you sure that's the reason?" he teased.

"I'll go and get us some food." I replied, standing up and receiving three bowls of food from Bombur, who luckily had managed to salvage his bag with pots and pans from the goblin caves. How he had managed to get it out of there was a mystery to me. Handing the bowls to Fili and Kili, we fell into a comfortable silence as we ate. Well, it was comfortable to me, but Kili, being the way he was, couldn't sit in silence for more than ten seconds without saying something inappropriate.

"So what were you up to with my brother?"

"Kili!" said Fili, hitting his brother across the head with the end of his spoon.

"Seriously, we didn't do anything. He was just helping to heal my back, that's all."

"Okay!" he held his hands up. "But if something did happen, I wouldn't say anything."

"Kili." Warned Fili. "Nothing. Happened. It would be unproper."

Blushing, I quickly ate the rest of my food (now completely aware of how hungry I actually was) and took my bowl back to Bombur. "I'm going to sleep." I declared, finding a nice soft piece of ground and lying down. Smiling when I felt Fili lay his coat on top of me, I was about to close my eyes to go to sleep when I heard several howls. Most worryingly, they didn't sound that far away. Could we get one moment's piece? I sat up quickly, my breathing getting frantic. I hated these guys; they never gave up.

"Out of the frying pan…" said Thorin.

"…and into the fire!" finished Gandalf. "Run! RUN!"

"Amaya!" shouted Fili, grabbing my hand and pulling me along with him. I think we'd probably done more running in the past day than the entire journey so far combined. Who needs to go on a diet when you can join a quest to slay a dragon, right? It was quite easy running down the hill; although falling over seemed very likely. I was also keeping tight hold of Fili's coat in one hand; it was incredibly comfy and soft, no way was I losing it.

The wargs and orcs however, had quickly caught up with us. They were so close I could hear their paws hit the ground and their ragged breathing. Speeding up my pace alongside Fili, we eventually came to the end of the hill. And by the end, I mean there was a very sharp, vertical drop over the edge of a cliff. I looked around. There was no place for us to go. We were screwed.

"Up into the trees, all of you!" yelled Gandalf, looking very panicky. Not good. "Come on, climb! Bilbo, climb!" Running over to the furthest tree (so we were as far away from those beasts as possible), I jumped and Fili boosted me up so that I could grab hold of the branch above. Waiting to make sure that he got up as well (Kili had also followed us and was climbing up the other side of the tree), I wasted no more time in swinging myself up onto the next branch up, until we were on a fairly high branch that could hold us both.

"They're coming!" warned Thorin. Backing into the tree trunk, I looked down to see a group of several wargs and their riders, looking particularly menacing. And in the middle of the group, was a white orc riding a white warg. I vaguely recalled a story that Fili and Kili had told me about Thorin and a white orc (apparently I'd missed the story when Balin was telling it because I had been crying about missing home on one of the first nights I'd been here), and looking over at Thorin, it was pretty easy to deduce that this was the exact same orc.

Thorin's expression was crossed with anger, disbelief and shock. "Azog?" he muttered, his voice matching his expression. The entire company was silent as the wargs moved closer, and I heard Fili swallow loudly.

"Nuzdigid? Nuzdi gast?" growled Azog. "Ganzilig-i unarug obod nauzdanish, Torin undag Train-ob." I had absolutely no idea what Azog had just said, and turning towards Fili, judging from his confused expression, neither did he. Thorin however, looked like he did as his face had changed into an expression of pain and grief.

"It cannot be…"

"Kod, Toragid biriz. Worori-da!" Still having no idea what he had just said, I watched as the wargs leapt forward to every tree the company was in, jumping up to try and…well, probably eat us given half the chance. "Sho gad adol!" I squealed as the wargs continued to jump up.

"Fili!" I yelled when I saw a warg get uncomfortably close to his legs. "Fili, we need to go higher!" Nodding, he followed me up so we were further and further away from their jaws. I noticed further along the trees that the wargs had uprooted them and the dwarves, Bilbo and Gandalf were having to jump from tree to tree until they were in the same one we were in. A downside to this? _All_ of the wargs were now attacking our tree, and it was beginning to tip over the side of the cliff. "Oh my god…oh my god…oh my god…" I muttered to myself. That was a long drop…

I heard a harsh laugh come from below by the orcs at our expense, and clung harder to the tree trunk. It was beginning to go dark, again, not to our advantage. I'd been told that orcs travelled better in the dark. This was not good…

Seeing a bright light above me, I looked up to see Gandalf (I had no idea when he'd climbed up there) lighting multiple pinecones on fire and throwing them down at the wargs, who did not like them one bit and were beginning to back off. "Fili!" I heard him yell before throwing one down. Fili quickly caught it and lit another pinecone close to him, throwing it to me. Wincing (the fire was hot, obviously…), I remembered to light another one before throwing this one down, hitting a warg in the nose (bulls eye!). Unfortunately, whilst the flaming pinecones were keeping the wargs at bay, it was also setting fire to everywhere else. I could see the flames spread along the base of the tree, and hearing an awful creak, the tree began to tip, the roots ripping out of the ground as it tipped precariously over the edge of the cliff. Thankfully, this was about as far as the tree leant, but I could tell that it was only a matter of time before it fell completely. I could hear the orcs laughing down on the ground, and the wargs returned trying to tip the tree further. The extra movement caused me to lose my footing, and I felt myself fall. Grabbing a hold of the branch, I was only vaguely aware on what was happening around me. Dori and Ori were holding onto Gandalf's staff barely keeping from falling, and the rest of the dwarves were shouting at Thorin.

I wasn't sure what was happening, but I got the idea that Thorin had left the tree and was trying to fight Azog, and from the way everyone was shouting, he wasn't winning.

"Noooo!" shouted Balin. I heard Thorin grunt in pain and his body slam to the ground.

"Thorin!" yelled Dwalin. "Noooo!"

"Biriz torag khobdudol." Growled Azog. Still struggling to hang onto the branch, I turned my head. Thorin was laid on the ground, barely conscious, battered and bruised, while an orc approached him with an axe, prepared to cut off his head. However, before the orc got there, Bilbo had run out (not quite sure where from), and was holding his sword out protecting Thorin. He looked a lot braver than I knew he felt, and I didn't envy him as I saw a cruel smirk cross Azog's face as he said something to his riders. They turned their wargs to Bilbo, itching closer all with cruel, gleeful expressions.

"Fili!" I cried, causing him to look down at me. He'd been trying to keep the wargs away with the pinecones, and was also having trouble balancing on the branch.

"Amaya! Durin, hang on, I'll get you…"

"No, Fili! Go help Bilbo!"

"But…"

"Go! I'll be fine!" Giving him what I hoped was a reassuring smile, he worriedly looked back at me before jumping down the tree with his brother to protect their uncle and Bilbo. I heard the sound of fighting down on the ground; Kili shooting his bow and various sword fights taking place. I winced as my hands slid down the branches, not wanting to think of all the splinters I could be getting.

After several long moments, the sound of screeching reached my ears, and I looked around to see about a dozen huge eagles. And when I say huge, I mean absolutely _massive_. By far, the biggest birds I had ever seen in my entire life (not that I'd seen many before). They swooped down picking up the wargs and their riders and dropping them over the cliff. Thanking whatever God there was here, I wasn't prepared when I saw an orc come up behind Fili, cutting him across the chest with its blade.

"FILI!" I screamed as he fell to the floor. It didn't look like it had gone that deep, but it was deep enough. He staggered back up however, prepared to defend his uncle. Thankfully, at this point, the eagles had started picking up the members of the company and placing them on their backs away from the danger and flying away. They'd only just managed to collect Ori and Dori when they had slipped from Gandalf's staff.

I'm not sure how they knew who I wanted to be with, but somehow I'd been placed on the same eagle as Fili and Kili. Fili was clutching his chest looking in the distance with a pained expression, and looking that way, I saw Thorin being clutched gently in an eagles claws, unconscious. I felt myself worry for him; what if he died? But there was nothing I could do right now, so trying my best to shuffle along the eagles back without falling off, I turned around and faced Fili placing my hands gently on his chest.

"You should have been more careful." I said, not noticing that I was crying as I saw the long rip in his shirt. I ripped the bottom part of my shirt away and started to gently pat it against his wound. It didn't really do much good, but there wasn't anything else I could do up here (Oin had all the healing stuff) and I needed to take his mind off of his uncle.

"It's fine." He murmured, looking down at me and taking my hands. At least they weren't covered in splinters like I'd feared.

"It's not fine." I replied. "This could have been a lot worse. It's probably going to scar. You could have died" My voice cracked. He nodded with his head down. "Hey, hey." I cooed. "Thorin's going to be okay, you know he is. He's too stubborn to go now." I heard him chuckle.

"You're okay, aren't you?" he asked, looking up. "I'm sorry, I should have tried to help y…"

"Fili, for the love of God, will you stop apologizing!" I moaned, taking his face in my hands. "_You _are the one injured here and you're apologizing! This is a dangerous journey and you won't be able to protect me all the time, but I promise, I will make sure that what we talked about in the goblin caves will happen. I can't live without you."

"All of it?" he asked, his grin crooked.

"Yes…" I said, confused as to where this was going.

"Including the mini Fili and Amaya?"

I laughed. "Yes, including that."

"Have you always wanted children?" he asked, now looking serious, like he really cared about the answer.

"What? Oh, no, not really. I mean…I never really thought about it." I was glad this was getting his mind off of Thorin.

"So why do you want them now, can I ask?" he asked, taking the material I was still rubbing his cut with (which was now covered in blood) and replacing it with some material of his own shirt.

I thought about this for a while. "Well…I suppose…it's because it would be with you. It just…it would seem right. Starting a family with you."

Fili grinned. "That's good. I've always wanted children. And as heir, I'm expecting to have an heir of my own anyway."

"So we'd have to have a child anyway?" I questioned, my eyebrows furrowed.

"No! Not if you didn't want to. There's always Kili to think about." He laughed.

"I think it's stopped bleeding." I said, looking down at his chest and running my hands down it. I won't lie, it felt good. I knew I was caught when I caught Fili smirking at me. "You're my boyfriend, I'm allowed to do this."

"Boyfriend?"

"Don't you have that word here?" At his confused look, I assumed no. "It's a word we use where I come from to refer to the person you're in a relationship with. Why? What do you say here?"

"We don't really have a specific word. I would refer to you as my 'One' as most people know what they means. I would also refer to you as miz sanâzyung. Sometimes people say 'beloved'."

"So I should refer to you as my beloved or my One seeing as I don't know what miz sanâzyung means? Unless you want to tell me? " I smiled.

"Whatever you want." He replied, kissing me gently and ignoring my latter question with a smirk. However, I had to move my hands to grip some feathers as I felt the eagle swoop downwards towards a huge rock. Once we'd landed, I slid off its back and waited for Fili, supporting him walk as we moved over to stand by Thorin. Sliding my hand into Fili's, I gave it a squeeze of support as I saw the state he was in. It didn't look good.

"Thorin! Thorin." Said Gandalf, running over and kneeling beside him. He then placed his hand on Thorin's face and muttered something that I assumed was a spell as Thorin's eyes soon fluttered open and he gasped for air.

"The halfling?" he croaked, sitting up slowly.

"It's all right. Bilbo is here. He's quite safe."

Dwalin and Kili moved to help Thorin off, but he shrugged them off to approach Bilbo. "You! What were you doing? You nearly for yourself killed! Did I not say that you would be a burden? That you would not survive in the wild and that you had no place amongst us?" He advanced upon Bilbo, who (not surprisingly) looked worried and frightened. "I've never been so wrong in all my life!" And with that, Thorin grabbed Bilbo by the shoulders and gave him a hug. I was sure my mouth, and the entire company's at that, was hanging wide open at this, but we soon started cheering. I was glad Bilbo was finally beginning to be accepted. "I am sorry I doubted you."

"No." argued Bilbo, pulling back. I 'awwed' in my head. These two were actually quite cute together… "I would have doubted me too. I'm not a hero or a warrior…not even a burglar." The company chuckled. "Is that what I think it is?" he asked, looking into the distance.

Walking with Fili to where he was standing, I squinted to see the outline of a single, solitary mountain.

"Erebor-The Lonely Mountain." Said Gandalf, seeing my confused look. I should have expected that answer, I thought to myself. "The last of the great dwarf kingdoms of Middle-Earth."

"Our home." Said Thorin.

"A raven!" exclaimed Oin, pointing at a bird flying overhead. "The birds are returning to the mountain!"

"That, my dear Oin, is a thrush." Corrected Gandalf.

"But we'll take it as a sign." Said Thorin. "A good omen.!

"You're right." Said Bilbo. "I do believe the worst is behind us." Leaning into Fili's side, I smiled. We were so close. Now all I needed was a bath.

-8-

A/N: and An Unexpected Journey is finished! Onto the Desolation of Smaug! In response to your opinions on the ending, I will bear them in mind.

Next chapter should be up soon and I look forward to hearing what you all think should happen!


	18. Chapter Eighteen

Chapter Eighteen

It turns out we had been dropped off on a giant rock (called the Carrock as we'd been informed) where the only way to get down was a series of giant steps. Like, massive steps; each one was about as big as me at least. No way was I going to be able to get down those, and Fili was going to struggle with his chest. I'd spoken to Oin about it and he'd told me that he'd run out of the herbs he needed to treat him, but he'd gladly gather more once we'd reached the bottom.

We'd only rested for about ten minutes when Gandalf suggested (more like insisted) that we move. Walking down the steps was harder than I even thought it was going to be. It took about five minutes to go down one, and there were at least twenty in all. I was near the middle of the group with Fili. He went down first, helped by Kili (it was taking him a while; I'd told him to take it easy with his chest and my tone when I said it made him know not to argue), and then caught me when I slid down the step after him.

It took us nearly two hours to reach the bottom, and when we did, I, as were all the others, was exhausted. So on top of being insanely filthy and covered in goblin blood and dirt, I was now extremely sweaty as well.

"Gandalf." I called over, running to the wizard. "Is there anywhere I can bath? Like, I don't know, a river or a stream or something?"

He chuckled. "I had a feeling you might be asking that. I do believe there is in fact a river very near here." Internally cheering, I scurried on after him as he started to walk away. "Ah yes. Here it is. Just beyond these trees." Well that was fortunate. "I will lead the others further along so you have some privacy. I'll also tell the others where you have gone." Thanking Gandalf and nodding, I ran off into the trees. True to his word, only several metres in, a calm looking river was there. It was quite pretty, not much current and well surrounded by trees.

Grinning at the thought of cleanliness, I gave my surroundings a quick glance around (I wouldn't want any peeping toms) before taking my clothes off and placing them on the ground at the side of the river. I was quite uncomfortable being naked in the forest, but, sacrifices had to be made. I slowly made my way into the water (it was very cold, I wasn't about to dive in head first) and set to work with washing my hair and cleaning…well, everywhere. I was shocked at the amount of dirt that actually came off my body. The water around me became very murky. I was also surprised to see how well my courting braid from Fili had held up. It still looked brand new. Goodness knows how Fili's looks; I could foresee me having to rebraid it a lot in the future.

Grabbing my clothes from the side, I quickly gave them a quick wash as well before laying them out on a rock to dry. Only now I was left with a problem. I had no clothes to wear. I couldn't exactly walk to all of the others, _that_ would be awkward… so I opted to just sit near the rock; I had my sword if anything happened at least.

However I hadn't counted for the voice that was now ringing through the air. "Amaya? Gandalf told me you'd be down here, I hope you're not…" Fili's voice was cut short however, when he appeared through the trees seeing me sat down. "Holy…" he turned his head away. "Sorry. I just…"

"Fili…" I said, not really sure what to say. This was a bit awkward. "What is it you want?" I asked, trying not to sound rude.

"Well, I came to see that you were alright…and well, I didn't want you alone in the middle of the forest…" I nodded, not that he could see me of course. "And Oin has made me some salve…for my uh, chest…"

"Right." I replied, clapping my hands together. "Here's what we're going to do then." Gathering up my courage, I walked over to him. "Take your shirt off." His head shot up. "You'll need to do that anyway to put the salve on, and it means that I can wear it while I do that. It will pretty much cover me, so unless you want me to stay naked, I suggest you do it."

I knew this was particularly difficult for him (he'd been brought up in a different way to me, and while this was quite a bad situation for me, I could almost guarantee, it was a lot worse for him), but he took his shirt off nonetheless and handed it to me. This one was bigger than the one I had, and came down to my mid-thigh. It clung to my skin because I was still wet, but I soon forgot about that when I saw him.

Shirtless was definitely a good look for him, and I could easily spend the rest of my life right here in this moment. He wasn't one of those people with huge muscles, I'd always known that, but he definitely had muscles nonetheless. He had broad shoulders, and you could see the outline of his muscles on his chest. The cut he had sustained went from just below his right shoulder to half way down his chest (I was now fairly certain it would scar), but I didn't care. I saw a trail of hair that led down towards his trousers, and I had to remind myself to look up. Yep, he was the definition of perfection in my book.

"Liking what you see?" he asked, teasingly, although I heard a tone of nervousness in his voice.

I smiled and placed gentle kisses on his chest. "Definitely. You're perfect." Pulling back, I dipped my fingers into the salve that he handed to me and grinned. "It may sting a little." I said, repeating what he'd told me last time we'd used this. Rubbing it into the top half of his cut, he shivered. "Is everything okay?" I asked, frowning.

"It's cold." He gave a little giggle.

"Well, yeah." I gave him a 'well, duh' face.

"You never said it was cold!"

"I didn't know you'd react like this! Don't be such a baby!" I rubbed more on, causing him to groan. Focus Amaya, focus…now is not the time to think of the fact that he's shirtless and making sounds like that…

Keeping my head down, I quickly applied the rest of the salve, checking that I'd got all of the cut with it. "There. You're done. We've just got to leave it now. Let it dry." Clearing my throat, I walked over to where my clothes were drying. Damn, still damp.

"Amaya?" I heard Fili ask, wrapping his arms around my waist from behind. "Are you okay?" I felt him run his hand down the wounds on my back.

"What? Yeah! Of course I am. Why wouldn't I be?"

"You went really quiet. That's not like you." Letting out a brief laugh, I shook my head.

"Sorry. I was just…distracted." Yeah…that wasn't embarrassing…

"Distracted by what?" I could tell he was smirking. He could be so cocky sometimes…

"By you…" I murmured, not wanting to admit it to him.

"Well, if it's any consolation…" he tilted my head up to face him. "…you always distract me, so we're even."

I moaned as he kissed me, letting these past few moments of frustration come across in the kiss. I was highly aware of our clothing situation, highly aware of the fact that anyone could come looking for us at any minute, but I didn't care. I tangled my fingers in his hair while he backed me up into the rock and I was vaguely aware of something digging into my leg which made me snap out of it. Better not do too much here. "Woah, down boy." I laughed, running my fingers through his hair past his braids.

"I would say I was sorry, but I enjoyed that far too much to care."

I nodded. "We'll have to continue that later when no one could interrupt. It would be extremely awkward if Thorin were to come this way." I gave him a cheeky smile before checking on my clothes again, finding that they were dry enough to put back on.

"I look forward to it." He turned away as I shrugged off his shirt (having to basically peel it off my skin), throwing it over his head as I put my own clothes back on. They were still a bit damp, but they'd have to do, and I was just happy that they were virtually clean.

-8-

Walking out of the trees, we saw that most of the others had already arrived. I put my excuse for taking so long to the fact that I was female and therefore required more time to get ready; you know, that old excuse that every male complains about. They'd already got a fire ready and were cooking something or other (honestly, these dwarves and their food) and I walked over to Kili with Fili.

"Wow, Kili. You don't stink." I exclaimed. "That's a first."

"I don't stink!"

"Well, you don't now." I smirked.

"What did I do to endure your wrath, Blondie?"

"Well first, you keep calling me 'Blondie'." I replied.

"And second?"

"You got me there. I just want you to stop calling me Blondie."

"No can do, Blondie."

I growled. "I hate you."

"No you don't. Why do you hate it so much anyway?"

"Because…because…I just do. Mind you, at least I know what it means…" I muttered.

"What was that?" asked Fili.

"I said, 'At least I know what it means!'"

"I'll just leave you two love-birds to it." Said Kili, walking over to his uncle, no doubt to tell him everything.

"Do you really want to know what miz sanâzyung means?" he asked, a knowing smile on his face.

"Yes, I want to know what mis sansungth…I can't even say it! Come on, please tell me. You've been calling me it for months! I'll be very grateful." I purred in his ear as I leant forward, giving it a discrete nip before pulling back. I could see some of the other dwarves looking around awkwardly, no doubt looking in our direction at just the wrong time. Ha. Oops.

"Oh really. Well, I guess in that case, I'll have to tell you." He paused for, what I'm sure he thought was, dramatic effect. "It means 'my perfect love' as a literal translation, but to us, it can also to refer to a pure love. Something, or someone that…will always be home, and no matter what happens, will always remain so. It has a very deep meaning in Dwarf terms. It's basically the most special, sacred thing we can call our partner."

"Those two words mean all that?"

"Well, some parts of the Dwarvish language mean a lot more than just words."

"But…but…" I was speechless. Seriously, if I'd have known what that nickname meant every time he'd called me it, I would have swooned. Probably would in the future.

"But what?"

"But you called me that on the night we met!"

"I know."

"But you couldn't have known that you felt that way about me after knowing me for ten minutes!"

"Yes I could. You keep forgetting what I'm telling you. I knew as soon as I saw you how I felt."

"Ahh…everything makes so much more sense now."

"What does?"

"Well, everyone kept saying that they knew something but refused to tell me. It's because of that name! That's how they knew!"

Fili chuckled. "Probably."

"So…" I said, yawning after the days events. "Do you think I'll actually be able to get to sleep without anything chasing us this time?" I asked.

"I'd imagine so, yes." He replied, allowing me to rest my head on his lap as I fell asleep.

-8-

A/N: so not a very long chapter, it was more of a filler really…but now we know what his nickname means! I hope it hasn't been built up too much, it was meant to be more of a cute little thing that was revealed later on, so I hope everyone's happy with it.

Anyway, thank you for all the reviews and I hope to hear from you all again!


	19. Chapter Nineteen

Chapter Nineteen

We all woke up fairly early the next morning. Everyone in the company had had an early night, exhausted from the last few days. Breakfast was a quick affair, and, not having many possessions left to pack up, we left to follow Gandalf. None of us really knew where he was taking us, and it took Bilbo voicing all of our concerns that finally got the wizard to talk.

"Gandalf, where are you leading us?"

"Very few people live in these parts." Said Gandalf, looking around. "Unless they have come here since I was last down this way, which is some years ago. But there is somebody that I know of, who lives not far away. That somebody made the steps that we previously climbed down- the Carrock. He does not come here often, certainly not in the daytime, and it is no good waiting for him. In fact it would be very dangerous. And it is him that we are going to see."

"And why is it called the Carrock?" asked Bilbo.

"He called it the Carrock, because Carrock is his word for it. He calls things like that carrocks, and this one is _the _Carrock because it is the only one near his home and he knows it well."

"Who calls it?" I asked, speeding up my pace so I was closer to the wizard. Fili and Kili hurried along beside me. "Who are we going to see exactly?"

"His name is Beorn." Explained Gandalf. "He is a very great person. You must all be very polite when I introduce you." He gave a pointed look in Thorin's direction, and I had to suppress a chuckle. He could be a bit blunt and definitely rude sometimes. "I shall introduce you slowly, two by two I think, and you _must _be careful not to annoy him, or heaven knows what will happen." He looked at me this time. Okay, fair enough…I could be a bit chatty. But annoying…of course not! "He can be appalling when he is angry, though he is kind enough if humoured. Still I warn you, he gets angry easily." We all gave uncomfortable looks at each other. This seemed like a bit of a risky visit.

"Couldn't you, er…couldn't you find someone more easy-tempered?" asked Bilbo, looking around uneasily. "Hadn't you better explain it all a bit clearer-"

"No I could not! And I was explaining very carefully." Gandalf looked annoyed at Bilbo's questions. "If you must know more, he is very strong, and he is a skin-changer." I looked at the others. Skin-changer? What was that? Like, a shape-shifter? Werewolf?

"What?!" exclaimed Bilbo. "A furrier, a man that calls rabbits conies, when he doesn't turn their skins into squirrels?" I gave him an odd look. What was the Hobbit on about? I had to admit, even though I was new to the concept that skin-changers even existed, I was taking this news the calmest. Definitely calmer than Bilbo at least.

"Good gracious heavens, no, no, NO! Don't be a fool, Mr. Baggins if you can help it; and in the name of all wonder don't mention the word furrier again as long as you are within a hundred miles of his house." Gandalf sighed. "He changes his skin: sometimes he is a huge black bear, sometimes he is a strong black-haired man with huge arms and a great beard." Huh, I thought to myself, if any beard can top Gloin's (which was very thick and had a strange braiding pattern), then I would be very impressed. "I cannot tell you much more, though that ought to be enough. At any rate he is under no enchantment but his own." I saw the others pass uneasy glances into the trees at either side of us. "He lives in an oak-wood and has a great wooden house; and as a man he keeps cattle and horses which are nearly as marvelous as himself. They work for him and talk to him." What is this, Narnia? I thought to myself. "He does not eat them; neither does he hunt or eat wild animals. He keeps hives and hives of great fierce bees, and lives most on cream and honey. Now, I will say no more on the matter. But you'd be best to keep your opinions to yourself in this company."

Now that Gandalf had finished talking and was now in what sounded like a very boring conversation about something or other with Thorin, I slowed down my pace allowing some of the others to overtake me.

"What do you think about who we're going to see, then?" I asked the brothers, who were walking side by side next to me. It was best to keep at a slower speed anyway; I didn't want Fili to hurt his chest too much after having it nearly sliced clean open.

"I think he sounds decent enough." Said Kili, grinning. "As long as he doesn't try to eat us."

I chuckled. "Just try not to say that to him!" I said. "Or he might just do that by the sounds of him."

"Yes, and you would be devastated!" He reached his arm across Fili to ruffle my hair causing me to scowl. "You really shouldn't pull that face, Blondie, it doesn't do you any good."

"Kili, I swear to whatever God exists in this place, that I will throttle you if you do that again." I took a deep breath. "And stop calling me Blondie!"

-8-

We carried on walking well into the afternoon. It was much hotter here than it had been previously, so everyone had stripped free of their cloaks and thick coats. We had to rest from time to time under the shade of various trees. As we carried on, I began to see more plant life spring up. I had never been one interested in flowers and trees and all of that sort of thing, but I really had to appreciate how beautiful they all were. It looked to me as if they were planted deliberately (and from the sounds of Beorn loving nature as Gandalf said, they probably were) as they were all in little groups of the same kind.

Walking further, we began to hear a faint buzzing and humming in the air. We saw the occasional bee fly past us and I was amazed at the size. They were huge (as were most of the things I saw here, it seemed); far bigger than anything we had back in my world. What must have been one of the average worker bees looked bigger than my thumb, and you could see the stripes of yellow and black far better than what I had ever seen. _Better not let them sting me_, I thought to myself. I'd never actually been stung by a bee before, but I'd imagine it would hurt. A lot, especially by one of these ones.

"We are getting near." Said Gandalf, looking around. "We are on the edge of his bee-pastures." We only had to walk a little further before we were surrounded by huge oak trees (I didn't want to think about how old they were) and a very high thorn-hedge which I couldn't see around. "You had better wait here." Advised the wizard. "And when I call or whistle begin to come after me- you will see the way I go- but only in pairs, mind, about five minutes between each pair of you. Come on, Bilbo, there is a gate somewhere round this way."

As Gandalf walked away, the rest of us were left awkwardly standing (or sitting, in my case) where he'd left us. Thorin, meanwhile was taking charge, instructing us on what pairs we were to go in. Nori was to go with Ori, Balin with Dwalin, Oin with Gloin, Bifur with Bofur, Bombur with Dori, him with Fili, and I was to go with Kili. It was only a few minutes later when we all heard a shrill whistle ring through the air, and after giving me a brief kiss to the forehead, Fili set off with Thorin around the corner and out of sight. Me and Kili only waited a moment later before we set off. Quite honestly, the five minutes we were supposed to wait dragged.

We walked round the hedge that blocked our view and through the gate Gandalf had mentioned. As we walked, the bees became more frequent, and we saw various wooden buildings where I assumed some of Beorn's animals lived. All in all, it was very pretty.

"You make my brother happy, you know." I heard Kili say beside me.

"What?" I asked, taking in what he had said. "I hope so. It wouldn't really be a good relationship if we made each other miserable all the time."

"Yes, but that is not exactly what I meant. You make him happy in a way I have never seen. He is generally happy, as you know, but it is more so now. I am glad." He smiled his goofy looking grin that I was becoming used to, and pushed open a small wooden gate that led to the door of the house just as another shrill whistle sounded from inside.

"Hullo!" said a huge man once we were inside. He had a wild mane of brownish hair, a serious set of eyebrows and a broken pair of manacles around his wrists which I daren't mention. "You came pretty quick, where were you hiding?"

I only gave a sheepish grin as he invited us into his home. Well, he certainly seemed friendly enough.

"Kili, at your ser…"

"Thank you!" interrupted Beorn, causing Kili to pause mid-bow. "When I want your help I will ask for it." He turned to me while I was trying to stop myself laughing at Kili's face. "And this must be the young lady you spoke about. My, she is a beauty. What is your name?"

"Urm…Amaya…sir?" I added to the end, not sure what to call him. Gandalf had said to basically keep him in our good books. What else should I have said?

Beorn chuckled. "Well, Amaya, come sit with us and let us get on with this tale, or it will be supper-time before it is ended."

Picking my feet up as he led me over to the others, I took the spare seat on Fili's right hand side as Kili took a seat on Thorin's left. We were taking seats around an extremely large table, with quite high seats, so I had to have Fili give me a little pull up to get onto the bench.

Gandalf cleared his throat. "As soon as they were asleep, a crack at the back of the cave opened; goblins came out and grabbed the hobbit and the rest of the company."

"Company? Do you always call six people a company?"

"Oh, no! There are a few more than the six of us…in fact, here are two more!" We turned towards the door where Balin and Dwalin were now stood, bowing as much as they could. Beorn looked quite amused at the sight.

"Company was right. A fine comic one. Come in then, and what are _your _names. I don't want you service just now, only your names; and then sit down."

"Balin and Dwalin." The two dwarves replied, looking quite confused at what was now going on. I could probably guarantee that they were not used to this kind of behaviour. Hell, _I_ wasn't used to this kind of behaviour.

"Now go on again!"

"Where was I?" pondered Gandalf. "Oh, yes! I was not grabbed. In fact, I had stayed behind in Rivendell and was planning on meeting the others in the mountains. Once I had arrived, I saw that they were not there, and naturally assumed the worst. So I found the goblin caves and killed a goblin or two with a flash-"

"Good! It is some good being a wizard, then."

"- and proceeded to walk through various tunnels into the main hall which was crowded with goblins. The great goblin was there with thirty or forty armed guards and I thought to myself 'even if they were not all chained together, what can a dozen do against so many?'"

"A dozen! That's the first time I've heard eight called a dozen!" I internally smirked. I realized what Gandalf was doing. Slipping in little comments like that meant that Beorn would be pre-warned about the upcoming arrivals, but the arrivals interrupting the story that he was clearly enjoying meant that he wouldn't focus much on them and would allow us all into his house. Very clever, I had to give Gandalf that.

"Well yes, there seem to be a couple more here now. Ori and Nori I believe." I laughed as they bowed in greeting, with Beorn giving them the same response as before. Itching closer to Fili for a bit of familiarity in this strange place, Gandalf carried on with the story, telling Beorn about our lucky escape out of the goblins caves and how Bilbo seemed to have disappeared. "We counted ourselves and found that there was no Hobbit. There was only fifteen of us left."

"Fifteen! That's the first time I've heard one from ten leave fifteen."

"Well, of course you haven't seen Oin and Gloin yet. And bless me! Here they are. I hope you will forgive them for bothering you."

"Oh, let them all come! Hurry up! Come along, you two, and sit down! But look here, even now we have only got yourself and nine dwarves, the hobbit that was lost, and this young lady. That only makes eleven, plus one mislaid, and not fifteen, unless wizards count differently to other people. But now please get on with the tale."

"You know." Fili whispered to me. "It really does make an interesting story."

"Yeah, other than the whole, nearly dying thing, it is rather enjoyable." I replied, finding his hand under the table and tracing the back of his hand with my index finger. "Your hands are very rough, have I ever told you that?"

Fili chuckled. "I am a dwarf, it comes with the title. Most of us have rough hands. It is strange to hold one so soft."

"But not bad, right?" I asked, some insecurity coming back. I constantly had the thought that, since I was so different to dwarven women, Fili would loose interest, no matter what bond he shared with me. I knew it was silly, but it was something I couldn't help.

"No. In fact, it is far more pleasant than I imagine mine feel to you." He winked.

"I don't know. I quite like it. It's different to what I'm used to."

Giving him another smile, I refocused my attention back onto Gandalf and Beorn's conversation. He had just finished telling him about how Azog had caused us to retreat into the trees and how we had to throw down flaming pinecones to keep the warg's at bay.

"And as you can imagine, it didn't look good for us, sixteen people in one tree…"

"Good heavens!" growled Beorn, who was beginning to look irritated. "Don't act like I cannot count! I can, and twelve isn't sixteen!"

"Yes well, there were Bifur and Bofur as well. I haven't ventured to introduce them before, but here they are." We watched as the two of them entered the house.

"And us!" cried two voices from around the door. Dori and Bombur had obviously not wanted to wait on their own, so had come straight after the other two. I couldn't really blame them. Being last was never fun.

"Well, now there _are _sixteen of you. Now, can we finish this story now? Without any more interruptions?" And so Gandalf continued on with his story, telling him all about Thorin's fight against Azog, how Bilbo had saved him and how the eagles had come and saved us jut at the right moment. Having been there the entire time, I had opted for lying my head on Fili's shoulder, having to blow some stray strands of his hair out of my face when they tickled my nose. It was far more comfortable and relaxing than sitting up.

It was nearly sunset by the time Gandalf had finished, and it seemed to me like Beorn had enjoyed the story. "A very good tale! The best I have heard in a long while. If all beggars could tell such a good one, they might find me kinder. You may be making it all up of course, but you deserve a supper for the story all the same. Let's have something to eat."

I grinned. My stomach had been rumbling since escaping the goblin caves. Hopefully the food would be good!

-8-

A/N: and the chapter is up! Sorry for the wait, but updates will be less frequent with college starting up again next week. I hope this is okay. I am now alternating between film and book to make it how I want.

Let me know how it is! And thank you for all your reviews! They make my day!


	20. Chapter Twenty

Chapter Twenty

The hall was now getting quite dark, so Beorn clapped his hands. Not sure what this was supposed to do, I was shocked to see four gorgeous white horses trot into the room with several large dogs. Beorn began to say something in some strange language that the animals seemed to understand as they left the room only to return carrying flaming torches in their mouths which they used to light the fireplace and other torches around the room. _This is by far, _the _strangest thing I have ever seen_, I thought to myself, looking at the animals with my mouth wide open. How they didn't burn themselves would forever be a mystery to me.

"This is insane." I said, rubbing my eyes. "Completely mad."

"What is?" asked Fili.

"What do you mean 'what is?'" I asked. "The animals! Since when do they do…any of this? My friend had enough trouble getting her dog to sit."

Fili chuckled. "It is a bit strange, I'll give you that."

I shook me head a little. "A bit strange." I muttered. "Try a lot strange."

Once the table was full of food and drink (ale, I'd been told, and quite strong ale at that), conversation started up in various groups around the table.

"So." I heard Beorn say from down the table. "There is one thing you left out. Tell me, why is Azog the Defiler hunting you?"

"You know of Azog?" asked Thorin. "How?"

"My people were the first to live in the mountains, before the Orcs came down from the north. The Defiler killed most of my family, but some he enslaved." I sat in silence looking across at the manacles I'd seen on his wrists. I guess I now knew how he had got them. "Not for work, you understand, but for sport. Caging skin-changers and torturing them seemed to amuse him." I shivered, remembering the cruel smirk that Orc had worn.

"There are others like you?" asked Bilbo. I now saw that everyone else was also listening to the conversation.

"Once, there were many."

"And now?"

"Now, there is only one."

There wasn't really much to say to a sentence like that (how were we supposed to respond?), so the company quickly restarted their conversations, trying to lighten the mood. I was busy loading my plate with food; I was starving, and everything here looked extremely good. Bread, meat, fruit and vegetables, it all looked great, and it was so _so_ good. Although I couldn't help but miss food from home. All in all, I was actually happy being here (how could I ever leave now?), but sometimes the odd thought popped up into my head. It wasn't sad thoughts anymore, but I couldn't help but think of hot chocolate and pizza. Little things like that. And there was nothing better than hot chocolate and pizza on a night in watching a movie.

Thinking that I would definitely make a pizza while we were here (if we were staying, which I was assuming we were), I resumed eating. Lovely, lovely food.

"So, lass." I heard Beorn say. Although his voice carried throughout the entire room, it definitely wasn't hard to hear him considering he was sat only a few seats away. And I assumed he was talking to me, as I was the only female in the company. Unless one of them wasn't telling me something (queue sneaky glances at everyone). "What brings you to this company, then? The hobbit I can understand, but you look quite out of place in a company of dwarves."

I smiled uneasily. Was that a good thing or a bad thing? "Well…Thorin sort of…found me, in the forest." Beorn raised an eyebrow. "I mean…I come from another world, I think, and I found myself in a forest, and I didn't know where I was, and Thorin found me…and now, here I am!" Okay, so I was _defiantly _crap at explanations. But it seemed to be good enough for Beorn, as he nodded.

"I see." He got up and walked over to me. I could see Fili tense a little beside me. To be honest, I was not exactly comfortable with all this attention on me. Thankfully most of the others were not paying attention and were focused more on the food, but Beorn was _huge_, and his stare was definitely unnerving. "And what are you, may I ask?"

"What… what _am_ I?"

"Yes. You certainly do not look dwarf-like, but then I assumed you must be to be with this one here." He gestured towards Fili. "Don't think I haven't noticed." He chuckled at our shocked looks. "It is not hard to figure it out, and I pride myself in my observations."

"Well, I'm human." I replied, shrugging. "Well, I was back where I come from. I seem to have shrunk…" I muttered at the end (yes, I was still bitter about shrinking). Beorn only grunted, giving me a pat on the back (which sent me flying forward towards the table) before returning back to his original seat.

"You are rather small." He grunted, before turning to talk to Gloin and Oin.

"That was intense." I said, tearing a bite out of my bread.

-8-

Beorn had left the table about an hour after we'd first started eating. To do what, I wasn't sure, as I was too busy feeling far to full and tired to care. So when all of the company left to go and sit around the fireplace a couple of hours later, I ventured off to find where we were to be sleeping. It didn't take me long. It seemed, in his absence, Beorn had organized (or, what was more likely, had his animals organize) beds for us to sleep in. They were on raised platforms at the sides of the halls, some side by side, and looked to be made from straw with cotton blankets.

I smiled as I heard the dwarves singing and telling stories where they were sitting. It was nice to hear some good things after all the things that had happened over the past few days. That, and they'd all had quite a lot of ale to drink. I had had about a mug and a half, opting to give the rest to Fili who had gladly taken it off me. It was definitely strong, and I had already started to feel a bit woozy from what I'd already drunk. And the mugs were quite big, due to the fact that they were made for Beorn and all that.

Securing a nice warm bed at the side of the hall, which was one of those that lay next to another bed, I shrugged off my boots, putting them to the side, and got under the covers. It was summer, so it was already quite warm inside despite the fires, but it was nice to have the comfort that I'd been lacking for a while.

It was about an hour and a half later when I began to hear footsteps coming towards me. I had been drifting in and out of sleep for all this time, constantly being awoken by the others laughing too loud or a thud on the floor that came from lord only knows who (I had a feeling that it was Bombur when the thud was particularly loud).

Glancing and lifting my head up slightly, I saw a tired looking Bilbo (who was looking more relaxed than I'd seen him in a long time) walk to the end of the beds and flop down into it, burying himself in the covers. Ori, Bofur and Fili were also among the Hobbit to come to bed. Ori and Bofur had chosen beds near the front of the hallway, and Fili, seeing where I was, had chosen the bed beside me. Not that I'd planned for that to happen. Not at all…

"Amaya?" he whispered, once he'd lay down and taken his boots off. Well, he tried to whisper. He'd had quite a bit to drink and was grinning like a loon. He was a loon… "Are you awake?"

"Yeah." I whispered back. "Where's Beorn?" I hadn't seen him since he'd left.

"He went outside a couple of hours back. He told us not to go outside until sunrise; it would be dangerous if we did." He snorted towards the end of the sentence for some reason. I thought it best not to ask why.

"Did he say why?"

"No, but I think we should follow his advice." He smiled. "Come here." Smiling, and having no choice in the matter as he reached out to pull my closer, I pushed my bed closer to his as he laid his covers over the two of us and put my head on his chest. "Now go to sleep." I heard him mutter some things as I lay there, but didn't hear what he said as I'd already begun to drift off.

-8-

I woke up the next morning to loud chatter coming from the dining room and a very delicious smell coming from that direction. Fili had already got up, and it seemed that it was only me and Bilbo (who was still fast asleep) left in bed. Untangling myself from the covers, I stumbled into the dining room trying to sort out my birds nest of a hair. The table had already been filled with breakfast, although Beorn was still no where to be seen.

I decided to take a seat next to Bombur and Bofur near the middle of the table this morning; I hadn't spoken to either of them in a while what with everything that had gone on.

"Morning." I greeted, as happy as I could manage. _Urgh, mornings._ They still didn't agree with me.

"Morning, lass." Said Bofur, grabbing me a plate and putting some food on it. "You alright?"

"Hmm? Yeah, just tired, believe it or not." I took a bite out of the bacon buttie I'd made, thanking my stars that at least I could still have _these _here.

"What's that you've made?" asked Bombur, looking up from his continuous eating to see what I was doing.

"A bacon buttie." I said, showing him. "You've never had one?" He shook his head. "I would have thought that you would have had at least _one_. Right. Just…get some bread, put lots of butter in it- it's always nicer with lots of butter- and put the bacon in the middle. And then just taste heaven."

Bombur took a large bite out of his food, and grinned. "Lass, this is delicious!"

I nodded my head in agreement. "How long are we staying here?" I asked. I was hoping that we were going to stay a while. It seemed nice; peaceful even. And it would be nice to get some days (hopefully a couple of weeks) without anything trying to kill us for whatever reason.

"We will be staying just long enough for us to regain our strength." Said Thorin. "We cannot afford to waste any more time than necessary."

Cheering internally, I was happy to know I was going to have a bed for at least a few days. And Beorn's grounds looked like they went on for ages; I would definitely have fun exploring it all. Although at this moment, more walking did not seem fun.

For the rest of breakfast, I spent my time joking and telling stories to all the dwarves around me (mainly Bombur, Bofur, Bifur (who inputted with random phrases in Khuzdûl so that I had no idea what he was saying), and Ori) about my childhood. They seemed particularly interested in my trip to the Deep (an aquarium in Hull that had all sorts of fish in) when I was seven, where I had visited the open tank so you could put your hand in. I, having gone with another girl I didn't like from the care home, had attempted to push her in several times (almost succeeding may I add) and as a result, ended up being grounded for two months. Being mad at the girl for being grounded (I'd insisted it was her fault), I had snuck into her room one night, shaved all of her dolls' heads, and drawn on her face with permanent marker some interesting things I'd picked up from the older children.

"Amaya." said Fili, pulling me out of the hysterics that we were all in due to a rather funny story about Bombur as a child. I looked up. "Would you like to train?" I cocked an eyebrow. Train? Now?

"Um…sure. Why not?" Walking over to where I had been sleeping, I pulled on my boots and grabbed my sword where I'd dumped it previously, and walked to where Fili was waiting beside the door. "Where are we training?" I asked. I hadn't really got a good look at most of the grounds around here, and I didn't know whether Fili did either, but he seemed to know where he was going. Kind of. It seemed like he was just wandering aimlessly around to me.

"Just around the side here." He led me to the side of Beorn's house where I could see more buildings where the animals must live, and a wide field with multiple horses around. Bees were still buzzing around, and I smiled at the songs I could hear multiple birds singing.

"So, why are we training?" I questioned, still smiling.

"What do you mean, why? Isn't that obvious?"

"Well…it's morning just after breakf- hey! What do you mean 'isn't that obvious?'"

He smirked. "Well…you're not exactly good with a sword are you? I mean…other than knowing to stick them with the pointy end…" Unfortunately for him, he couldn't say anymore as I'd thrown my sword to the ground, tackled him and was now sitting on his chest.

"Well, I've managed so far, haven't I? I killed…some goblins…" Even to my own ears, that sounded pathetic. Killing goblins wasn't exactly hard…unless you were me apparently.

"Okay, I'll give you that one." Fili replied, chuckling. "But that doesn't take away the fact that there is still a lot of room for improvement."

I smirked at him, rolling off him and knelt on the grass. Why couldn't the grass be this soft everywhere? It would have been a lot easier to sleep on. "Are you sure that's the only reason we're training? It doesn't have anything to do with whisking me off, all on my own…" I giggled as he blushed, rubbing my nose against his and creeping my hand up his chest.

"Well…we haven't been properly alone in a while…" he murmured, giving in and itching closer. "It might have been something to do with that."

"Oh no, mister!" I said, pulling away. "You brought me out here to train, so train we shall!" I walked over to where I'd thrown my blade. "Come on, then!" Muttering to himself about, and I quote 'the unfairness of it all' and 'how I "seduced" him', he picked himself off the ground.

Getting into position, I was just about to launch myself at him, when I saw the company walk around the corner. "Thought we'd come and see how ya were progressing, lass!" said Bofur. _Great_, I thought.

"Okay." I said to Fili. "But I'm going to warn you, I'm going to do everything in my power to win." I looked around to see the dwarves murmuring to each other, and I itched closer to hear them taking bets on who would win, me or Fili. It seemed most of them bet Fili. Right, well, we'll see about that!

"Good luck with that." said Fili. That 'fight' was a bit of a blur to be honest, but I remember that when I said 'everything in my power to win', I meant it. That, and I wanted to prove everyone who bet against me wrong. Although I didn't blame them for that. Fili had had _way more _practice than I had. So I didn't stick purely to sword fighting. In fact, I tripped him over several times, tried to elbow him (a low point in my opinion), and in the end, it took me running at him from the side and knocking him to the ground and wrestling the sword out of his hand that I declared that I won.

Hearing whistling coming from the crowd around us, I smiled and stood up. "I won!" I saw that it was only Ori, Bofur and Bifur that had bet for me. I had been most surprised at Bifur, I never spoke to him much, but I sent him a grateful smile nonetheless, and vowed to talk to him more often.

"No you didn't!" argued Fili, looking like he was fighting not to smile at the shit-eating grin I had on my face. Hey, I was very happy on my victory. "That was not sword fighting!"

"I never said I was sticking to sword-fighting. In a real fight, I think it's clear to say that I would get my arse kicked. And obviously, my way works." And, skipping over to where Kili was in hysterics at the outraged look on his brothers face, I joined in, cheering on Thorin and Dwalin who'd begun to train.

-8-

A/N: another week, another chapter. I hope this one's okay. They're probably only going to be at Beorn's for another chapter, but it's the Elves soon! Which means, Legolas and Thranduil, spiders and dungeons! Oooooooh!

I want to say a huge thank you to everyone that's stuck with me on this story! Chapter twenty already! So, please review and let me know what you think!


	21. Chapter Twenty-One

Chapter Twenty-One

We only stayed at Beorn's for another five days. Staying longer would have been nice, but now we were so close to Erebor, everyone wanted to get there as soon as possible. It seemed they had all forgotten about the fire-breathing dragon that was there. All except me and Bilbo. He seemed to get fidgety every time conversation turned towards the Lonely Mountain, but I admired him. He put on a brave face nonetheless. Meanwhile every time _I _thought about it, I felt like running back in the other direction. But I'd promised to the others I would help, and I couldn't leave them all now. I don't think I would have been able to see the crushed look on Fili's face (or any of their face's for that matter) if we didn't reclaim the mountain. And it was to be home to me too (hopefully). I had as much to gain as the others, or so I tried to tell myself.

And (something good that I had done here), I had finally managed to make a pizza! I had had to hunt around a fair bit to try and find the right ingredients, but thankfully I managed to find them all in the end. I don't think I could have handled the disappointment in not making one after my heart had been set on it after I'd come up with the idea. Bombur had asked me if he could sit in on what I was making seeing as it sounded 'interesting'. I wasn't sure how watching me cook was interesting, but whatever floats your boat, I suppose.

I only managed to make about four fairly large pizzas by the time they had all come in from yet more training. It seemed that's all they seemed to do in their spare time lately. I joined them occasionally, but I really didn't have the attention span to do it all day.

"So, how are we supposed to eat it?" Gloin had asked, looking at one of the margarita pizzas with a small amount of confusion.

"I need to cut it!" I'd said, grabbing a knife and cutting each pizza into eight pieces. "And then you just pick it up by the crust and eat it. This was one of my favourites back home. We used to have it once a month at the care home for a treat." To cut the story short, everyone loved it, but none more so than me. It was like a small piece of home that I vowed to make as often as I could. Nothing could beat pizza. Except more pizza.

Beorn had also returned a couple of days after he'd disappeared. He'd come back little after breakfast, smiling at the company as we were currently lounging around his house.

"I see you're all still here!" he said, walking through the front door. I was sat on the floor with Fili leaning between my legs. He was teaching me how to braid hair better than I already could, and since I was not particularly skilled at the craft, it was taking me a while just to get a basic Dwarven braid done. It seemed a fishtail braid was all I was going to be able to manage. "Not been eaten by any Wargs, Orcs, or Goblins yet, I see."

Beorn seemed happier than I had seem him yet, and while this was a good sight for us, I was a little weary for the reason why. We didn't have to wait long before he told us. It turns out that he had been over the river and right back up into the mountains (how fast he must have been running I dread to think). From the burnt cliff-top where we had been stranded in the trees, he had discovered at least that that part of Gandalf's story was true, but it turns out that he had done better than that. He had caught a stray Orc on his warg, and from that, he had discovered that the Goblins were incredibly angry about the death of their king, and that it wouldn't be too long before the Orc pack found us again. A fact that made me shiver and accidentally pull part of Fili's hair too hard.

"Sorry." I muttered, now running my fingers through his hair to avoid it knotting where I'd braided.

"It was a good story, that of yours!" he said. "But I like it still better now I am sure it is true. You must forgive my not taking your word. If you lived near the edge of Mirkwood, you would take the word of no one that you did not know as well as your brother or better. As it is, I can only say that I have hurried home as fast as I could to see that you were safe, and to offer you any help I can." I gave a silent 'awwww' in my head. This guy was totally a softie at heart. "I shall think more kindly of dwarves after this." I could see the dwarves trying to see whether this was a compliment or not. "Killed the Great Goblin, killed the Great Goblin!" he muttered to himself.

"What did you do to the Orc and the Warg?" asked Bilbo.

"Come and see." I stood up hesitantly. The slight smirk that Beorn was wearing didn't look like I would be seeing something pleasant. But nonetheless, I followed the others around the house, past where we'd trained previously, and on to the gate. I grimaced at the site that greeted us. An Orc's head was stuck just outside the gate, black blood dripping down the wood, and a Warg's skin was nailed to a tree not far behind.

Trying to keep my breakfast down, I turned away and went to stroke one of Beorn's horses nearby, letting the dwarves have their fun over there. There was a particular horse that was always nearby; it had a caramel coloured coat with a slightly lighter colour hair. It was smaller than any other horse I'd seen around here, and was incredibly friendly.

"His name is Arondel." I heard Beorn say from behind me. "And it looks like he likes you."

"I don't know why." I replied, turning to the side so I could see both him and the horse. My voice shook a little. I was still slightly nervous when talking to Beorn, although I knew I had nothing to fear. "I've never been an animal person."

"You just have to understand them." Said Beorn, muttering something into Arondel's ear, no doubt in that weird language he used the first night we were here. I wasn't particularly sure what Beorn meant by what he's said to me, so I had just agreed with a smile and headed back indoors a while after he'd left me.

It was now our last day here, and I'd been informed that Beorn had allowed us to borrow his ponies (or horse in Gandalf's case) for our journey to the forest of Mirkwood (as if the name didn't seem depressing enough). He'd also given us each enough food that would last us for a number of weeks if we ate with care. It didn't look entirely appetizing; it was mostly food that would keep, such as dried fruits, nuts, flour, jars of honey and twice-baked cakes which didn't take much to fill your stomach.

Beorn had warned us about the forest as well. He said that it was dark and dangerous (although I'd already guessed that by the name), that water was not easy to find, and nor was food.

"The time is not yet come for nuts." He said. "Though it may be past and gone by the time you reach the other side. And nuts are about all that grows there fit for food; in there the wild things are dark, queer and savage. I will provide you with skins for carrying water, and I will give you some bows and arrows. But I doubt very much whether anything you find in Mirkwood will be wholesome to eat or to drink." I sighed. Wasn't there anyway we could just…not go in there, I thought to myself. Anywhere sounded better than this place. "There is one stream there, I know, black and strong which crosses the path. That you should neither drink of, nor bathe in; for I have heard that it carries enchantment and a great drowsiness and forgetfulness. And in the dim shadows of that place I don't think you will shoot anything, wholesome or unwholesome, without straying from the path. That you _must not _do." I shivered at his warning. I vowed to myself I would _not _be the awkward person that inevitably falls in. "That is all the advice I can do. Beyond the edge of the forest I cannot help you much; you must depend on your luck and your courage and the food I send with you. At the gate of the forest I must ask you to send back my horse and my ponies. But I wish you all the speed, and my house is open to you, if you ever come back this way again."

Thinking intently of Beorn's warning, we all headed back to what we were doing previously. I had been lounging in my bed, savouring the feeling of…well, the feeling of a bed. Spending what I was beginning to think would be many weeks in a dark, dreary forest meant that there would be no such luxuries in there. It would probably be either very cold, or very warm, with lots of bugs, which I was not one bit happy about. I hated bugs. A lot. With a passion.

"What are you frowning about?" I heard a voice ask from above. Snapping out of my thoughts, I looked up.

"I was just…thinking." I replied, standing up so I was more level with Kili. Not that I_ was _really level. He was one of the tallest dwarves here, taller than his brother at least, which made me feel even smaller than I already did.

"And what had you thinking so hard, Blondie? You'll strain yourself."

"Rude!" I glared, hitting him on the arm. "But it's not important. How can I help you?"

"Help me?" he grinned, knowing full well what I meant. Christ, this dwarf was annoying. Giving him a dead-pan look, he held up his hands. "Okay, okay. If you must know, my brother is looking for you. He's waiting in 'the glade', or so he said. I'm presuming you know what that means." I nodded. A couple of days ago, we'd found a little glade a few minutes away from the house. It was where I spent a lot of my time here. Well, there and my bed. "He seemed rather eager too, if you ask me." He wiggled his eyebrows.

"Kili, I hate you."

"You love me really!" he shouted as I walked away.

"Yeah, sure. Believe what you want!"

-8-

It was only a short walk to the glade, five minutes at the most. Like most places in Beorn's lands, the glade was extremely pretty. Flowers lined some of the edges, and the trees were all in their final stages of growing all their leaves so they were insanely green. Fili was sat just to the side with what looked to me like a medium-sized thatched basket.

"What's all this about?" I asked him as he stood up.

"Well…" he put his arms around my waist, drawing me closer. "We're leaving early tomorrow morning. So I figured this is the last time we're going to be properly alone for quite a long time." I giggled as he leaned forward and pecked my nose. "And can't I treat you every now and then?"

"Well," I replied, pulling him down. "I won't argue with that, but I really don't expect anything like this on this journey." I watched him open the basket. "But when we're finished, I expect to be showered with gifts." I joked. "You are a prince, after all."

"I am." He smirked. "And I would shower you with only the best." Giggling again, I leaned across to kiss him, although I pulled away when he tried to deepen it to pull the basket towards me.

"Now what have you put in here?" Pouting, Fili moved forward again to open the lid.

"I gathered a bit of food from Beorn's. I remember you saying that you liked to go on picnics when you were younger. So I made you one. As best as I could, anyway."

"You. Are. The. Best." I told him in between kisses. He'd packed only a few sandwiches, put together rather roughly it seemed, but they tasted nice. He'd also gathered various pieces of fruit, cheese and some honey that I poured on my bread. I was never keen on honey, but this one was especially yummy. It didn't take long to eat it all between us. "So," I said, once we'd finished eating. "What else did you have planned, if anything?"

"I thought we could just sit here and enjoy the lovely sun-set. What do you think?" Scrunching my face up in annoyance as he laid down on his back, I crawled over on my knees until my body was hovering over his chest. That was definitely _not _what I'd had planned. "I don't think that's the most productive way we can be spending our time." I said, instead.

"O-oh?" stuttered Fili, as I angled my hips down.

"Uh huh." I smirked, leaning down so my lips hovered just out of reach.

"So w-what do you su-suggest?"

"Why don't you tell me?" I squealed when he sat up suddenly, and I had to remember to move my head back so we didn't head butt. That would be a mood-killer. My legs were now either side of his waist and I was finding it hard to breathe as his face was so close. He didn't move for a few minutes, but I could see his eyes roaming my face, as if he was trying to remember every detail of it. I smiled softly as his hand came up to stroke my face, and I leant into his touch, making the most of this moment. Who knew when we were going to get an opportunity like this again?

"I love you, miz sanâzyung." He said, although I had to strain my ears to hear him. I don't think I could ever forget the expression he had on his face when he said it. Like he wanted it engrained in my memory.

"I love you, too." I replied, leaning my forehead against his. I moved my face further forward to kiss him, taking no notice of anything else around us. I could never actually believe how gentle he could be. His hands were rough, his beard felt scratchy against my skin and the beads on his moustache left cold trails down my neck as he moved lower. Yet he still felt soft, somehow. I gasped when he bit down on my collar bone and I could feel him smirk against my skin as I craned my neck away to give him better access. "Fili…"

Instead of responding, he began to lay me down. Unfortunately, he didn't count for the fact that the basket was still behind us, and I giggled at his apologetic look as my head hit the handle. Moving to the side and shoving it out of the way, he soon resumed his task of trying to kiss every inch of me he could reach. Or at least that was what it felt like. I found it hard to focus on much, and I almost lost it when I felt –ahem- a certain part of him prod against my thigh. I tried to get back to my senses. Fili had told me about things like this. In his tradition, it was customary to wait until marriage (particularly the wedding night, obviously). That, and I'd never done 'the deed' before, and was quite nervous about it. This type of thing was fine, but I knew if we didn't stop soon, it would escalate.

Sitting up again, I directed his mouth back onto mine again, though this time, the kiss was gentle. Pulling away, we were both taking deep breaths, and I gave him a toothy grin. "Phew." I said. "That was…er…" I cleared my throat. "Well done."

"Well done?"

"Uh…yeah." Fili raised an eyebrow at me. "I get awkward, don't look at me like that."

"I know you get awkward." Chuckled Fili. "It's quite amusing, if you ask me."

Sliding off of his lap (with him giving a strained grunt as I created a bit of friction against…well, you know… A bit of pay back for his comment), I stood up and held out my hand. "We should probably be getting back." The sun was _just _starting to set, so it would be quite a while until it was dark, but it would still be best to go back now.

Walking back into Beorn's, it was incredibly hard to ignore Kili's smug grins and comments. Of course he would know what we'd been up to. But thinking back to a few minutes ago, I found myself really not caring less.

-8-

A/N: and there we go! Update! This first year back of college has been incredibly hectic! I literally hate A-Levels so obviously that's taking a priority at the moment, but I'm trying incredibly hard to make at least one update a week.

I hope this chapter was okay. Quite honestly, I hate no idea what to put. Mirkwood next and all the spooky going's on in the forest. And the wood-elves! Legolas! Thranduil! Spiders! (And cue the shivers)


	22. Chapter Twenty-Two

Chapter Twenty-Two

Fili and I were awoken incredibly early the following morning by Kili, who had only opted to kick Fili's side to wake us up. He seemed like he was on death's door. In fact, glancing around the room, most of the dwarves did. We were now used to sleeping in until half past ten to eleven in the morning. Now it couldn't be past six in the morning. The sun was barely up.

Groaning against Fili's chest, I snuggled deeper into the covers. "Come on, Maya." Grumbled Fili, shifting so he was sat up and my head fell into his lap. He had a comfy lap, I'll give him that. Mind you, I think anything would have been comfortable at this point in the morning. "We need to get up."

"Noooo…" I pulled myself up so I could put my hands on his chest to push him back down. "Sleep..." Unfortunately for me, Fili was quite strong ('quite' being an understatement), so me pushing him back didn't really do anything other than make my arms ache, so I settled for collapsing back into his lap.

Fili chuckled. "Come on, lazy. Breakfast time."

"Nurghhh."

"You don't want Thorin or Dwalin to come over and get you up, do you?" I looked up to give him a blank, sleepy stare. "Or do you want me to call Kili back?"

"Okay, okay. I'm up." I moaned, rolling to the side and running my hands through my hair. It took me a few minutes to even realise that the reason we were getting up so early was because we were leaving. It was only me, Fili and Ori left in bed, and Ori was currently busy putting his boots on. I had tended to walk around here in bare feet. It was much comfier than my filthy shoes that I had barely taken off since the beginning of this journey. "But I'm not happy about it."

Crawling over Fili's lap to stand up and walk to the dining table, I couldn't help but dread the next part of our journey. Beorn's warning was still fresh in my mind, and no doubt that Azog and his 'gang' as I referred to them as, were moving closer to us with every day.

But now was not the time to think about that, I thought to myself as I climbed up onto a seat next to Bofur. He'd already set up a plate for me- some slices of buttered bread, various berries, and honey, that I was gradually becoming very partial to.

"When are we leaving?" I asked, refraining from yawning.

"As soon as we have packed the rest of our stuff." Replied Ori, scribbling in his journal, no doubt everything he'd thought he'd missed from our days here. Even though every time I saw him here, he was writing. I honestly had no idea what else he could write about. I'd have to ask to see his journal some day. I had frequently seen him glance over to where I was sitting in camp when we'd stop, his pen (or quill I guess, or whatever they called it here) rushing across the page. All I could say that he was lucky that the journal was incredibly thick. He would definitely have filled a standard A5 notebook from back home in no time.

"Oh." I said, although that reply certainly didn't help considering I had no idea how much we had left to pack. Relishing the taste of the honey and bread, I quickly finished it and jumped down from my chair back to my bed with a longing look to the table still covered in food. I was full, but I knew that wouldn't last.

Considering I didn't have hardly any possessions in the first place (I'd lost one of my socks from back in my world I'd stuffed in my bag in the Goblin caves. Tough luck, I thought. It's not like I ever matched my socks anyway), all I really needed to do was put on my boots and cloak and set off. The others, however, had a lot more possessions than me. Fili, for example, had his hundreds of weapons. Honestly, I didn't know where he put them all (and I wasn't sure I particularly wanted to know). At least I knew he would be well protected if anything happened, and…well, we were going to battle a dragon, so something was definitely going to happen.

The others were continuously going to and fro from their beds to the ponies Beorn had gathered for us outside, packing up the food and water skins, attaching various weapons to the sides of the animals.

"Miz sanâzyung." I heard Fili say. "Are you almost packed?" I looked up from where I was rummaging in my bag. Honestly, I'd had my head stuck in it just so it looked like I had something to do. I'd finished packing ages ago.

"Urm…yeah." I replied. "I think so. Just need some water and I'm good to go."

"Great." Said Fili, kneeling down besides his bed with his back to me.

"What about you?"

"Hmmm?" he looked up from whatever he was fiddling with in his bag.

"How much have you got left to do?"

"Oh! Not much. Just…like you said, water."

Hmmmm….he was definitely up to something. I'd seen him and Kili discussing privately a lot while we were here, and they always changed conversations whenever I came near. I'd opted to just leave them to it, but that didn't mean I wasn't curious.

-8-

About an hour later (I had a feeling some of the dwarves were deliberately packing slowly) we were all seated on top of our ponies. Beorn had given me one of my own, but I had insisted that I was to ride with Fili (oo-er). I had been riding with him for the entire journey, and I didn't think I would be comfortable with riding a pony on my own. Something told me I would have looked how Bilbo looked when he first had to when he joined us. That, and leaning against Fili's chest with his arms around me holding the reigns was a very nice feeling.

"The Orc pack will not dare to cross the Great River for a hundred miles of the Carrock nor to come near my house." Said Beorn as we were saying our goodbyes and thanks. He'd given me a large pat on the back that made me buckle forward and a promise that I was welcome back any time. "But I should ride fast, for they may cross the river to the south and scour the edge of the forest so as to cut you off, and Wargs run swifter than ponies." Great, thanks Beorn. Very reassuring. "Still," he continued. "You are safer going north at any rate. Be off now! As quick as you may!"

In lower spirits than we had been five minutes ago, the company set their ponies to a steady walk as we set off. I caught Bilbo looking back to give Beorn's house a longing look; he had been particularly fond of the land here. He said it somewhat reminded him of the Shire. I hadn't been in the Shire long enough to really notice, but I agreed all the same.

It didn't actually take that long to reach the borders of Mirkwood, and now that I saw it, I thought that it definitely lived up to its name. The trees looked ill, and I could feel a bad vibe around the edges. Sounds stupid, and it may have just been my imagination, but that's what it felt like.

"The Elven Gate." Said Gandalf, sliding off of his horse. "Here lies our path through Mirkwood."

"No sign of the Orcs." Muttered Dwalin, also sliding off his pony. "We have luck on our side." Great, just jinx it right there. I glanced over at where I saw Gandalf peering at in the distance. Vaguely I could see a giant form of an animal; Beorn in his bear-form, I assumed.

"Set the ponies loose. Let them return to their master." The company murmured their complaints, but none the less, did as the wizard said. "Amaya, a word, if I may." Shrugging at Fili, who was just following me to the ground, I wandered over to Gandalf, who was having what looked like a very fun conversation with Thorin.

"What's up?" I asked, conscious of how Thorin did not looked very pleased. Not that he had been in a better mood for the majority of this journey now that I think about it.

"I feel it only necessary to forewarn you. It is not only the trees in Mirkwood that is sick, but the air itself. As you are not from this world, I am unsure on how this will affect you. But you must remember, make sure the others stick to the path. I am counting on you for this." Wow, no pressure there then. Nevertheless, I nodded with an uneasy smile.

"Right, yeah. Stick to the path; don't get too sick on the air. Got it."

"This forest feels…sick." Said Bilbo, calling over to Gandalf as if he had overheard our conversation. "As if a disease lies upon it. Is there no way around?"

"Not unless we go two hundred miles north, or twice that distance south." Smiling slightly at Bilbo's defeated look, I skipped over to my pony and untied by bag from the side. It was only a few minutes later when we heard Gandalf shouting at Nori, who was busy releasing all the horses. "Not my horse! I need it." He needed his horse? Where was he going?

"You're not leaving us?" asked Bilbo, his hand fidgeting in his waistcoat pocket.

"I would not do this unless I had to." That's a yes, then. "You've changed Bilbo Baggins. You're not the same Hobbit as the one who left the Shire."

"I was going to tell you; I…found something in the Goblin tunnels."

"Found what?"

Bilbo's hand remained in his pocket while he stuttered on what to say. What did he have in there? "…my courage." His took his hand out of his pocket.

"Good." Said Gandalf, not really sounding like he believed him. "Well, that's good. You'll need it." He walked over to his horse. "I'll be waiting for you at the overlook, before the slopes of Erebor. Keep the map and key safe. Do not enter that mountain without me." He turned to give a very stern look at Thorin. "This is not the Greenwood of old. The very air of the forest is heavy with illusion. It will seek to enter your mind and lead you astray."

"Lead us astray?" I heard Bilbo mutter to someone. "What does that mean?"

"You must stay on the path; do not leave it. If you do, you will never find it again." With amazing grace, he jumped atop of his horse and steered it away. "No matter what may come, stay on the path!"

"Well, Gandalf's gone. That's actually happened." I said, walking towards the Elven Gate Gandalf had pointed out. Not that it looked very Elven. Well, not the Elven we'd seen back in Rivendell at any rate. This looked a lot more run down. Heaving my bag onto my back, I turned towards the others. "Are we gonna go or what? The sooner we're in there, the sooner we're out. And don't we have some sort of deadline?"

"Indeed." Said Thorin, moving to stand in front of me. "We must reach the mountain before the sun sets on Durin's s Day."

"Durin's day!" agreed Dwalin. "Let's go."

"This is our one chance to find the hidden door."

Taking my last breath of clean air I'd take in a while, we set off into the deep, dark forest of Mirkwood. Hopefully it wouldn't be as bad as everyone was saying.

-8-

A/N: so, short chapter, and definitely not my best! But it's mostly a filler, and, as per, I am super busy with work and stuff. But they're in Mirkwood now, and things are about to take a turn for the worse…again.

And 100 reviews! I just want to say thank you! I never thought I would reach that many! :D

Let me know what you think!


	23. Chapter Twenty-Three

Chapter Twenty-Three

The forest of Mirkwood was even worse than I had imagined. My pack, which had seemed manageable back near Beorn's, now felt incredibly heavy on my back despite the fact that there wasn't really that much in it, and Gandalf was right; the air felt _wrong_. It felt like it was increasingly difficult to breathe the further we went in, and I could see everyone's moods begin to drop. We barely spoke to each other, and when we did, it was only to discuss who was on watch for the night, a job everyone dreaded.

And the nights were the worst. It was pitch black at night; I couldn't even see my hand when I waved it in front of my face. Added to that, I could barely sleep. Huge, wide eyes seemed to surround us wherever we camped for the night, and it seemed like they didn't even blink. The absence of any breeze or clean air and the rustling sounds I constantly heard only added to my sleepless nights.

I had noticed while in the forest that groups of us tended to stick together. Balin, Dwalin and Thorin would walk together near the front, Oin, Gloin, Dori and Nori would walk near the middle along with Bifur, Bombur, Bofur and Ori, and Bilbo, Kili, Fili and I would walk at the back. I think that this was mostly for some form of comfort; a familiar face in this dreadful place. I found my hand squeezing Fili's most of the time, no doubt cutting off any blood flow he had to the limb, but if it hurt he never complained.

I had also found myself comforting Bilbo frequently. The poor Hobbit clearly didn't like the forest any more than the dwarves and I, but I knew that Hobbits were used to more outdoorsy atmospheres whereas Dwarves could handle being stuck in a mountain all day. While they didn't like this place, they would probably be able to put up with it for longer. Or so I told myself.

Truth be told, after about a week we began to run out of food, and certainly water. Fili was constantly trying to sneak his food into my pack without my knowing, something which frustrated me to no end. Who the hell did he think he was helping if he starved himself?

It was also becoming harder and harder to try and stick to the path. It seemed to twist and turn, sometimes becoming overgrown with tree roots and weeds so we couldn't see it. I had to remind myself of what Gandalf had insisted. _No matter what may come, stay on the path! _Thankfully, Thorin also seemed to have remembered the wizard's advice, for we were still following it. But I couldn't help but think that something bad was going to happen. We'd tried shooting for meat, but all we'd managed to get was a tiny black squirrel, which had barely any meat on it anyway, and that which it did have tasted absolutely rank.

After nine days in the blasted forest, everyone's mood seemed to have hit rock bottom. No one uttered a word, we had barely any drops of water, and hardly any food at all. Everyone's stomachs were rumbling and whenever someone _did _speak, it was to argue. It was on this day that we came across a river. This was obviously the river that Beorn had warned us about. The water was black; or at least it looked black in the lack of light. It was pretty lucky that Beorn had warned us about this river actually, as I'm sure that all of us would have gladly drunk out of it. The only question now, however, was how were we to get across it? The path clearly continued on the other side, but the river was too wide for us to jump.

"How are we going to get across?" I asked, clearing my throat. Nobody answered, so I unlatched my hand from Fili's where it had been basically glued for the entire trip in here to wander along the banks.

"There is a boat on the far bank!" cried Bilbo, who had followed me without me noticing. Squinting into the distance, I could barely make out the boat; my eyesight wasn't really as good as it could be. "Now why couldn't it have been on this side?" Why indeed, Bilbo, I thought, that would definitely be helpful.

"How far away is it?" asked Thorin, walking over. He'd also been awfully quiet, bar when he was ordering people around.

"Far enough." Replied Bilbo. "There is no way any of us could jump it." Well I could have told them that! "But perhaps…has anyone got a rope?"

"I do." Said Dori, reaching into his pack and pulling one out. Listening as Thorin made plans with Kili on how best to hook the rope onto the boat and pull it to this side, my hand sought out Fili's again. I really needed the comfort in here; the time in this forest was beginning to be on par with our time in the Goblin caves. Sighing, I leant my forehead against Fili's chest. His heartbeat never failed to relax me.

Meanwhile, I heard the constant sounds of Kili throwing the rope into the river to try and pull the boat over to this side. It only took three or four times, however pulling the boat was a whole other matter. In the end, it took Kili, Dori, Dwalin, and Gloin to get the boat loose and to this side.

Turning back around, I saw that the boat wasn't awfully big. It could probably fit about four people in at a time along with all of their things. In the end (after many arguments on some of the dwarves parts; it seemed not speaking for days had only fueled their ability to argue more than I thought possible), the groups of who shall cross was decided. Thorin, Balin, Dwalin and Fili were to cross first, followed by Kili, Ori, Bofur and Bifur, next was Oin, Gloin, Dori and Nori, and Bilbo, Bombur and I were to cross last. Something that Fili was not very pleased about. He had almost demanded to Thorin that I was to cross with him, until I pointed out that it would be best for the two smallest people to cross with Bombur (quietly of course; I hadn't wanted to offend my cooking buddy), and that nothing would happen to me. Bilbo and Bombur would take care of me for the tiny amount of time it would take to cross.

It didn't take long for each group of dwarves to cross. About five minutes at the most. They used some branches we'd found on the bank to steer the boat across, and we made sure to keep the rope on this side so we could pull the boat back. It was just as I was getting out of the boat after Bilbo that everything went pear-shaped. Bombur (who had been grumbling the entire boat ride about always being last), had lost his footing on the inside of the boat. And all in a split second, Bombur had tipped over the side of the boat into the black water below. And, unfortunately for me, this had caused the boat to tip over.

Bracing myself for the cold shock that was bound to come, I hadn't prepared for the hands that had grabbed my arms and fronts of my clothes and pulled me onto the shore. Looking up, I saw Fili, Thorin and Bofur, who had all reached out to prevent me from falling in. Breathing deeply, I looked into the stream.

"We need to get Bombur! He'll drown!" I yelled, urging them to do something after I had calmed down. Thankfully, the dwarves were prepared, and they quickly threw the rope into the river for Bombur to catch. It took a lot of strength for them to pull Bombur up, for when we finally did, he was fast asleep smiling away as if everything was hunky dory. Lucky him… Walking away from the dwarves, who were cursing their bad luck, I quickly ducked behind a tree to, you know, do 'my business'. When I walked back, the others were mooching around.

"Amaya!" I turned to see Fili stomping across. "I knew you should have come across with me!"

I sighed. This forest was getting to him. He was a lot more cranky lately, and I hadn't seen his crooked smile I loved so much in a long time.  
"Fili, come on. Look at me, I'm fine. It doesn't matter." I tried to reassure him.

"'It doesn't matter?'" Fili mocked. "You could have…you could have fallen in, you could have drowned! But you don't care about that, do you?"

I sighed. "Honestly, you're blowing this _way _out of proportion!"

"_I'm _blowing this out of proportion?"

Trying hard not to lash out, which I was quite close to, I opted for the better option. "Right, okay. Here's what we're going to do. You're going to go and cool off, and maybe I'll speak to you again when you want to have a civilized conversation. I'm not going to stand around while you twist everything I say." And without another word, I stomped away. With another sigh, I saw that the dwarves were back to their 'no speaking unless it was an argument' phase. They all looked thoroughly depressed. Even Bofur, who I could always count on for a laugh and a funny story. That was how I could tell things were getting very bad.

-8-

On the fourteenth day of our time in Mirkwood, Bombur had finally awoken. As we had travelled even further along the path, the dwarves had had to take it in turns to carry him as me and Bilbo were no way near strong enough. I found it mildly amusing that it took four of them to carry him. Only mildly though…I wasn't in a good enough mood for it to be any more than that.

I had barely spoken to Fili since the river, and it was thoroughly depressing me. He, meanwhile, was looking very worse for wear. He had bags under his eyes, his skin looked sickly, and a frown was permanently etched onto his face. But even through all of that, he was still constantly fiddling with something that I had no idea what it was. Whenever I came within a few steps of him, he would quickly hide it away. But I, once again, told myself I didn't care. I'd said that I would talk to him when he wanted a civilized conversation, and thus far, he'd said nothing. It was times like this when I wished I wasn't so stubborn and would go and talk to him first.

When Bombur woke up, he did nothing but complain of how hungry he was. This did nothing to cheer the others up; we only had scraps of food left. Thankfully, the 'forgetfulness' Beorn had mentioned had only lasted a few hours. If I wasn't so depressed, it would have been hilarious to see Bombur wondering why we were in the middle of the forest when a few hours ago he was about to be eaten by a troll.

And still, we carried on. I stayed near the front of the group, trying to find where the path led. It seemed that Gandalf was right in his prediction that I would not be as affected by the forest as the others. By this point, they were staggering around, looking for anything which would help us. Which, as I expected, was nothing.

"Hey!" I heard one of them shout. "I think I see something over there!" Turning around to see what they were on about, I saw Bofur pointing into the trees.

"Well, we need to go and look, then!" said Ori, about to walk off. Panicking, I thought of what Gandalf had said again. _Stay on the path_. The way they were going was not on the path, and from their state of minds, it was not easy to assume that there was actually nothing there.

"Wait!" I shouted. "We need to keep moving forward. Stick to the path. We've been in here for two weeks. We must nearly be on the other side!" I gave them a desperate look.

"Oh really?" said Gloin, who had always been quite civilized to me. "And why should we listen to you? What help have you been?" I furrowed my eyebrows.

"Aye! He's right!" agreed Dwalin.

At once, the others joined in. Feeling quite attacked by them, I tried to remain level-headed. They weren't in their right mind. It was just this place getting to them. "Please, guys. Come on. Just…come with me. Fili, please, tell them."

"Oh, now you talk to me?" he asked, giving me a hard glare.

"Fili, what…"

"You ignore me for days, and now suddenly you speak to me as if nothing has happened!" I swallowed thickly. _It's just the forest_, I thought. _It's affecting the way he's thinking, just like Gandalf said_. "Typical."

"Fili, co...wait, what do you mean 'typical?' I'm not the one who has been acting odd for weeks, hiding whatever it is you've been doing!" I could feel my temper begin to flare. "But have _I _said anything about it? No! So, please, for the love of all things holy, just come with me and we'll get out of here, and everything will go back to normal!"

"It's just the way humans act, isn't it?! They don't know love, not like we do! You only ever do things if they benefit you! You don't actually care!"

"If they benefit me?" I knew this argument was getting out of hand. We were arguing about things that were minuscule, that didn't matter, but I couldn't stop myself from retaliating. Sick or not, I wasn't going to let him talk to me like this, and as I knew none of the others were going to back me up, it was up to me to stick up for myself. "Who decided to help a bunch of dwarves, who were nothing to me by the way, take back a mountain that was being guarded by a fire breathing dragon! Who has stuck by them through flesh-eating trolls, murdering goblins, and gangs of Orcs who were trying to torture and kill us all? Oh, that's right! Me, that's who! So don't tell me that I only do things that benefit me, because that couldn't be further from the truth." I took a deep breath. "You know what, if you want to wander aimlessly in the forest, then by all means, go. See if I care."

I could see a flicker of doubt in Fili's eyes, but it was gone almost as soon as it had come, and without another moment, he was following the others into the trees towards whatever Bofur had 'seen', leaving me on my own in the middle of a spooky forest with no provisions other than a couple of nuts and a few drops of water. I had thought for a brief second that Bilbo was going to stay- he was looking quite uneasy- but just at the last second, he disappeared into the trees along with the others.

I couldn't help but feel betrayed. Wasn't it those same dwarves that had said that they would protect me? That they wouldn't let anything happen to me? Wasn't it Bilbo who had told me that we would stick together? And now they had left me. They wouldn't be able to find their way back and would probably starve in this place. _But at least they'll starve together_, I thought. Not a very reassuring thought, but it was certainly better than being on your own and starving.

_But I'm not helpless. I can get out of this place._ Yes, I would get out. All I needed to do was follow the path. Pulling my bag up onto my shoulder, I set off walking. The forest seemed even creepier now I was on my own. I jumped at every little noise, and I had to remind myself to toughen up. It would not do to be scared right now. I still had my sword. I wasn't defenseless at least.

-8-

After about two more months (in reality, it was probably about a day, but it was hard to tell in here. The day was about as dark as the night and seemed to drag), I was prepared to just sit down and accept my fate. My logic was that if I stayed closer to where the dwarves and Bilbo had left, the easier it would be for them to find me. _If _they found me. Wow, I was so optimistic.

I hadn't got much sleep that night, but it hadn't stopped me from making some progress. In fact, I was quite proud of the distance I had covered. However, when I saw where I had ended up, I would have gladly turned around and ran for my life. Spider webs were everywhere, and I mean _everywhere_. I don't know how I had missed them when I'd walked over here; it was probably because I had my head down and was in deep thought about…well, I couldn't really remember so I couldn't have been very important. But back on subject, the webs were gigantic! They spanned from tree to tree and went so high I couldn't see the top.

I backed away. If the webs were this big, how big were the spiders? I shivered…I hated spiders. With a passion. Everything about them creeped me out; their legs, their eyes, their pincers…eurgh!

Just as I was backing up, I heard what I had been dreading. The sound of clicking from behind me. Gulping, I slowly turned around, hoping with faint hope that it was just…something that wasn't a spider. And the, guess what? Because of my good luck that had existed throughout the entire journey, I think it was a given that a giant spider should be standing behind me. Like, huge. Taller than me. Just when I was about to run away, I felt a sharp pain in my lower abdomen, and everything went black.

-8-

A/N: woo! Quick update! And they're in Mirkwood, finally! In response to some reviews:

**BrooklyntheElf****: **I'm not sure about the whole Kili/Tauriel thing yet, so you'll just have to wait and see!

**Dalonega Noquisi****: **As for what's going on with Fili, who knows…? All will be revealed….

And I'm so glad that everyone else is enjoying it! It really makes my day when I read your reviews!


	24. Chapter Twenty-Four

Chapter Twenty-Four

When I finally woke up, I felt sick. I couldn't move my body, and I couldn't even open my eyes. My body ached, whether from stiffness or something else, I didn't know. my first thought was that the spider had injected me with something that made me go unconscious when it had stabbed me with its pincer…thing. Groaning, I tried to get some form of sense of where I would be. I could hear sounds of clicking; were those the spiders? _How many of them were there?_ From the sounds of it, lots. It was at that moment, when I came to the realization that I was hanging upside down. How it had taken me so long to notice was anyone's guess, as now I couldn't help but notice how all the blood was flowing to my head, making me feel even more woozy than I already felt.

If I _could _move, I wouldn't have dared to. It seemed that the spiders didn't know that I had woken up yet, and if they did, I dreaded to know what they would do. Were they planning to eat me alive? Eat me dead? I wasn't really sure which one was worse. Either way, I would be eaten. What a way to go. I had to admit, I didn't see it coming.

I could feel my sword hanging by my leg (caught up in the web I was no doubt hanging in- the thought made me shiver, you know…metaphorically since I… couldn't move). Obviously the spiders weren't the brightest of creatures. But thinking about it, what could I do? Cut myself free? The thought was laughable. How high up was I hanging?

To be quite honest, the list of negatives was probably endless. How was I going to get out of this? The dwarves were…god only knows where, and Gandalf wasn't here to help us this time. I thought back to what I said to Fili. I had basically told him to get lost; that if he died in the forest, I didn't care. I mean, I hadn't said that outright, but it was easy to assume that from what I'd said.

Oh god…what if I died and that was the last thing I said to him? Even if he did deserve it. Which he did. But that wasn't the point! At that point, I felt like I was the worst human being alive. Which then made me think, _oh wait, Fili thought that too…_ damn these thoughts!

I wasn't sure how long I was hanging there, but as the feeling gradually started to come back into my limbs, I guessed a very long time. I was starting to feel very sick from the hanging upside down thing, and my stomach growled loudly. Groaning at the _awful_ timing, I sighed. Really, stomach? Now?

At this moment, the spiders decided it was time for another round of scary clicking. Quite honestly, even though I hated it, it would be extremely handy to understand what they were saying. Was it dinner time? I certainly hoped not.

Deciding that it was finally time for me to open my eyes (I'd had them closed this entire time, scared of what I would see), I cracked them open. I wasn't completely blind, I saw, but it wasn't like I had a clear view either. I was indeed trapped in a massive cocoon like web (this time I did actually shiver), but from the few small gaps I could see outside. From my view, I could see quite a lot of spiders scuttling (is that the right word? Scuttling? Creeping? Walking?) around, jumping from web to web. These ones were even bigger than the one I had briefly seen, and seemed to be carrying some more large bundles. I imagined that that was what I looked like inside of here. But what _were _they carrying? So more poor souls that had got lost in the forest, perhaps? But it couldn't be the company…they were probably far away by now. Hopefully out of this dreadful place. On their way to Erebor. Without me.

There was more clicking as they carried the bundles in. Whatever was in there were making the spiders very excited.

-8-

It must have only been a few minutes later when I heard a sound I never thought I'd hear again.

"Here!" I heard a voice say, and it had surprised me to realise that it was Bilbo. Or was it Bilbo? Maybe all the blood in my head was making me go crazy. But I knew that I didn't imagine the spider that fell past my head, slamming onto the floor. And I knew I didn't imagine the cries and the high-pitched squeals that the spiders were making. So, was that really Bilbo?

The next thing I knew, I started to hear thuds sound from the ground. Things were being dropped onto the ground. Were the spiders doing it? Was it Bilbo? What was Bilbo even doing here? Before I had any more time to think about it, I heard a snapping sound from above me, and felt the feeling of me falling through the air. With a lot of force (which I was thankfully cushioned from by the many layers of web), I hit the ground, landing face side down.

By now, if it was the spiders doing this, they must have known I was awake, so I decided to take a chance.

"Hello?" I called, my voice muffled even to my own ears. "Bilbo?" And then, hallelujah! There was light! Something out there had finally taken pity on me and decided to cut me out of this gross cocoon thing. But the thing I was faced with when I looked up was definitely not on my 'expected things' list. I was faced with Bofur's surprised face, staring down at me with as much shock as I felt.

"Lass?" He asked. "What are you doing here? We thought you were…" Recovering from my initial shock, I shakily stood up and managed to fix him with a glare. Sure, he did technically get me out of this rather sticky situation, but, well, he _did _leave me to follow the others. I was still annoyed at them. This didn't really change anything.

"Yeah, well…" I huffed. "I was just…hanging out." I heard Bofur give an awkward chuckle at my attempt at a joke.

Pointedly ignoring the others who were looking at me with just as much shock, I glanced around. There was even more webs here than I had dared to even think about, and there was not a doubt in my mind that the spiders would quickly regroup, and this time, kill us all. I mean, if they had managed to capture every single one of the dwarves, we were screwed if they came back.

"Lass..." I heard one of them start to say.

"Before any of you speak," I interrupted. "and trust me, I would much rather you didn't, I think it best if we get out of here. I don't fancy being spider dinner." I saw Fili inch towards me. "And don't you come anywhere near me." I didn't see the crushed look on his face when I said that (and I was glad I didn't) but I could hear Kili try and comfort his brother in low whispers so I couldn't make out the words.

"Amaya's right." Said Bilbo. "There is a way out over here." Okay, something was odd. Why the hell were the dwarves following Bilbo? I looked at the others. They looked as crap as I felt; hungry, tired and sick of this blasted forest.

Unfortunately, we barely made it out of the little web cove before the spiders came back. And they came back with a vengeance. This time, instead of trying to uselessly run away, I did what I should have done in the first place, and pulled out my sword.

Seeing a spider scuttle towards me, I stabbed my sword at its face, forgetting everything I had been taught (I know, helpful right?). But I did remember Jon Snow's marvelous advice, _stick them with the pointy end._ So that's what I was doing. Thrusting my sword into the eye of the spider, grimacing when I heard the squelching sound and its legs curl in on themselves. Eyes were harder than I imagined and my phobia just got worse. Eurgh…

Feeling too proud of myself for actually defending myself for once, I failed to notice another spider creeping up on my from behind. Sneaky bastards… By the time I had turned around, I was near enough for me to see my reflection in each of its eight eyes. But before I could uselessly raise my sword, an arrow had flown past my right ear, right in between its eyes. Spinning around, I saw Kili lowering his bow and giving me a regretful look. Too relieved to be mad at him at that moment, I gave him a brief nod of my head before attacking another spider that was creeping behind Gloin.

All in all, I had actually managed to kill about six spiders before we were in the clear (I made sure to stay focused this time). And by 'in the clear', I mean that we had time to run away before the spiders in the trees could make it to the ground.

We didn't actually get far, truth be told. The spiders were faster than we were and had quickly surrounded us again. We fanned out in a circle, covering each others backs. But it wasn't needed. Almost as if he had appeared out of thin air, a blonde-haired elf had ran across a tree branch, swung down a spiders web and killed the spider in one quick move. I had to give the dude credit, it was very impressive.

There was really no need to help them kill the rest of the spiders, for not ten seconds later, several other Elves had joined the blonde one, and had killed or scared away the spiders. I felt a dwarf put his hand on my shoulder and try and pull me behind them, obviously uncomfortable by the Elves, but I shrugged them away and inched closer to a slightly darker haired elf. They gave me an odd look, but didn't move. What threat did I pose? And what threat did they pose? I mean, they'd saved us, right? Why would they save us if they were just going to kill us?

"Do not think I won't kill you, dwarf. It would be my pleasure." Said the first elf, pointing his bow at Thorin. Huh, guess I'd spoken too soon.

I looked at Thorin's face. His face seemed like a mask, but I could see some of the emotions underneath. Must have been my psychologist side coming out. He looked angry; he clearly wasn't trying to hide the piercing glare he was sending, but it looked like it ran deeper than that. I thought back to everything I'd been told. Were these the elves that had refused to help them when Smaug had attacked? They must have been. We were in Mirkwood, and the Elves that Thorin had mentioned had been from Mirkwood. This wouldn't be good…Thorin didn't exactly handle these situations with much tact.

"Search them." The elf commanded. Immediately, the elf I'd stepped closer to moved towards me and held out his hand. I knew what for. Reluctantly, I handed him my sword. Well we were _really_ screwed now. Note the sarcasm. I also had to hand him my bag which didn't really have anything useful in it anyway, bar my old clothes and some other bits and bobs I'd collected over the months. When he moved to check my pockets, I could hear snippets of conversations the others were having. They obviously weren't being as cooperative as me, and I could see that the elf searching me was relieved that I was behaving.

I snuck a glance over my shoulder to look at Fili, who was scowling when an elf confiscated his never-ending weapons. When he saw me looking, however, his expression immediately turned to that of regret and sadness. Still mad at him, I looked away towards where Gloin was arguing with the blonde-haired elf.

"Hey!" he shouted. "Give it back! That's private!" I recognized the picture frame Gloin kept that had a picture of his wife and son in the elf's hands. He'd shown me it one night after I'd asked if any of the others were married. Hardly any of them were, but I could clearly tell from my time here that family meant everything to these dwarves.

"Who is this?" mocked the elf. "Your brother?"

"That is my wife!" exclaimed Gloin, and I could see his hands itching for the weapon that had been taken from him.

"And what is this horrid creature? A goblin mutant?"

"That's my wee lad, Gimli." I could hear the pride he held in his voice over the anger at the elf. If I wasn't mad at him, I would have found it sweet.

As the elf walked away to talk to another brown-haired one, I turned back to Fili. It was just reflex by now, something that was beginning to annoy me. But I snorted when I saw that he was _still_ being searched. He opened his jacket to show the elf that he had no more weapons, a smug look on his face, but scowled again when they found a knife hidden in his hood.

It was another ten minutes or so (of arguing between Thorin and a lot of the Elves for the most part) before we were ordered to move. The elf that had searched me was walking beside me.

"Do you actually live here?" I blurted out, curious. I mean, who would want to live in this god-forsaken place.

"Yes." He replied, after a moment of hesitation. It seemed he wasn't sure whether he should be talking to a prisoner or not, for that was surely what we were now.

"How? Surely those spiders are everywhere?"

"The borders of our realm are well protective. Nothing gets in. Or out." I knew that last part was directed at me. Advice that said, _there is no point in even _trying _to escape. _

"Well, doesn't that just sound…charming."

-8-

I won't bother boring anyone with the journey to the so called 'Woodland Realm'. It was long, boring and at the end of it, my feet were aching like hell. I did notice however, that Bilbo had disappeared, although I was smart enough not to say anything.

We were promptly led over a rather thin bridge (still walking next to the dark haired elf, I felt rather queasy as I looked over the edge. I was too close to it for comfort) and through a _huge _set of gates. Like, he really meant it when he said you couldn't get out of here. Christ.

"Holo in ennyn." Said the blonde haired elf, who I'd heard was called Legolas. I had to admit that Legolas was one of the most good looking people I'd ever seen. He looked absolutely flawless. Like the Elves in Rivendell, but with a more…unearthly quality. But I couldn't help thinking, _he was no Fili_. I shook my head to get thoughts of him out of my mind, but come on, really…I was mad at him, not blind.

We were then led down so many walkways and bridges that I would have no idea how to get out of this place even if I wanted to. But I couldn't deny the beauty of the place. It was like they'd make the kingdom _from_ the forest. Pillars seemed to be massive tree trunks, intricately carved so they looked like they were twisting up, and the bridges made from stone looked like they had been carved from a cliff or something. I wasn't sure whether it had been _mad_e to look like this, or if they had actually hollowed out this place from tree and stone. Either way, it was fairly impressive.

Unfortunately, I had no more time to admire the view as we were led down many steps into the dungeon where we were all shoved into individual cells. I caught an elf pulling yet _another _dagger out of Fili's coat and hid a chuckle. _Where the hell did he keep them all?_

"This is not the end of it!" yelled Dwalin, slamming his fists on the bars. "You hear me?!"

The cells themselves weren't actually all that bad. We were able to talk to one another in other cells (not that I would be), and they were quite roomy. There was no bed, but we were provided with some thin blankets that would keep us warm. There was no windows as we were probably underground, but there was no blood stains on the floor and walls like dungeons I'd seen in movies and stuff, so I took that as a positive sign.

-8-

Not bothering like any of the others to shout any curses or insults to the Elves, and having just resolved to sit against the wall and well…sulk, I was the first to see Thorin be escorted in. He was looking worrying smug.

"Did he offer you a deal?" asked Balin when he saw him, standing up.

"He did." Replied Thorin. "I told him he could go 'Ish kakhfê ai'd dur rugnu!' Him and all his kin!" Even if Thorin's tone hadn't given it away, I could tell from what I saw of Balin's facial expression that this was the wrong thing to say. Damn you Thorin and your no tact attitude!

"Well…that's it, then. A deal was our only hope."

"Not our only hope."

I closed my eyes as they fell silent. I was in one of the middle cells, so I could see most of the cells at the other side, which, unfortunately for me, Fili was in. Because of this, I had scooted towards the back of my own, out of sight. I needed some time to myself, believe it or not.

-8-

A/N: so, chapter twenty four is up. And they're in the Woodland Realm and all locked away.

Just to clarify, I will not be doing the whole Kili/Tauriel thing in this. To be honest, I'm not overly keen on it in the films, so I've opted to skip it.

So, let me know what you think! :)


	25. Chapter Twenty-Five

Chapter Twenty-Five

Being on my own, while feeling more relaxed than I had been since back at Beorn's, wasn't exactly fun. It turns out that sitting on a cold hard floor, staring at the same four walls for hours on end wasn't the most interesting thing a person can do. Shocker! I could hear the others talking to each other through the bars, discussing Erebor in the vain hope that we would actually get out of here. I had more pessimistic thoughts. There was no doubts in my mind that these Elves were incredibly stubborn, and would not let us out without us admitting why we were here. I mean, they were immortal, for God's sake. Our life time would probably feel like nothing to them.

We weren't mistreated, thank god. We were delivered with food and water twice a day, but I didn't eat much. My mind couldn't get off the thoughts of the argument I had with Fili, and it was showing in my mood and behaviour. I was eating about half of the meals they delivered, and I was only sleeping for about two to three hours at night, maximum. Fili's cell was nearly opposite mine, and I could constantly feel his eyes on me, although he never tried to speak. I was thankful for this. I wasn't sure I would know what to say.

It was our fifth day in the cells when something finally happened to me. Legolas, who it turned out was the prince here (_more _royalty. I was really moving up in the world talking to all these…well, royal people), appeared outside of my cell.

Furrowing my eyebrows in confusion, I slowly got to my feet and looked up at him.

"The king wishes to see you." he said, unlocking the cell door.

"You're not going to handcuff me while I walk, are you?" I asked as he looked hesitant. "Because, come on, I'm not exactly much of a threat."

Legolas chuckled. "I was not. But I could if you wish."

"You know what, I think I'll pass, thanks."

To go and see the king, it involved walking past the others' cells. I heard them shout at me, warning me to not go and be careful, but I ignored them. I knew I couldn't ignore them forever, but at this point, my mind was elsewhere. _Why was I being summoned? What did they want with me?_ _Had I done something? But how could I? I'd been stuck in here the entire time!_

Climbing the many steps it took to reach the king, I was fully aware of the ache in my legs. Not using them in many days had left them stiff, but I was incredibly thankful for the change in scenery.

After a couple more minutes, we had reached a large throne room. Looking up, I saw the actual throne. It was on top of many steps which set it well above everything else, and sitting upon it must have been the king. I saw the resemblance between him and Legolas immediately. They both had the long, light blonde hair, similar face structure, but the king's face, I noticed, was much sterner. He looked like someone I didn't want to cross.

"I have brought her, father." Said Legolas, who gave a brief bow and stepped backwards towards the shadows at the edge of the room. Looked like I'd be on my own then.

"I see." Said the king. "So you are the woman my guard brought in." I shivered as he looked at me. His eyes looked cold and distant.

"Urm…" I coughed. "Yes…your…majesty?" It was strange saying that. I'd never had to use words like that with Thorin, Fili or Kili. Was that the right term to use? _Your majesty? Your highness? Your grace?_

The king chuckled, although there was no humour there. "I presume they are treating you correctly?" He stood up from his throne and slowly walked down the steps, keeping his eyes on me the entire time making me squirm. Was it always so hot in here?

"Er…yes, I suppose so, yes."

"Good." I could tell he really didn't care by his tone of voice, but I made no comment. "Now, perhaps you can tell me what you are your…friends, were doing in _my _lands." Well, he certainly didn't beat around the bush did he? I mean, did he really think that I was going to betray the others and tell him everything? If Thorin hadn't said anything, why would I?

"I'm afraid I can't, no." I gave him a hard stare.

At that moment, his cool, calm expression matched his eyes as his face became cold. "Are you certain about that?"

"I'm fairly sure, yeah."

He was silent for a few minutes, as if he was in deep thought. "You show great loyalty to these dwarves."

"I do."

"Why?" he asked, his face now inches from mine. Like, my personal bubble had been totally and utterly popped. "What have they done to earn such loyalty? And from a human woman, no less?"

"No less?" I echoed. "Look, buddy, you're really not doing a good job on charming me. I mean, does that ever work?" He gave me a confused look. "Why would I tell you anything when you insult me like that?"

"Answer my question." He demanded, ignoring my comment.

"I'm not telling you. It's none of your business." I smirked. My moment of smugness was broken, however, when he took a rough hold of my upper arm. I was sure it would leave bruises.

"Who do you think you are to speak to me in such a manner? I am the king, and you will tell me what I want to know." Dear God, he looked scary. I was right when I said you wouldn't want to cross him, but I made my move to back down now.

Gathering my courage, I ripped my arm out of his grasp. "No I will not. You are not my king, and I do not take orders from you!" I wasn't expecting the slap across my face I received, and as my head flew to the side, I saw Legolas take a hesitant step forward. "Doing that won't change anything." I said, feeling a small trickle of blood run down my chin from my lip.

"Say what you will." Said the king, turning back to his throne. "Stay here and die then. You and your dwarves. I do not care."

It was obvious he did care (about the whole 'not telling him thing'. Obviously not about us dying, otherwise he wouldn't send me back there), but as Legolas took hold of my arm (much more gently, may I add), I tried to put that conversation to the back of my mind as quickly as possible.

"I must apologize for my father." Said Legolas. "I…it is not like him to do that." He seemed conflicted, as if he didn't know what to say. I'm not sure I would have known what to say in his position either.

"It's fine. It didn't even hurt." Okay, that was a lie. It stung like hell, and I had to keep wiping the blood away, staining my sleeve a dark shade of red.

"Say it again and maybe I will believe you." he chuckled.

We were silent for the rest of the journey, and I only briefly said goodbye when he put me back in my cell. I couldn't be _too _friendly with an elf; wouldn't want something else for the dwarves to hold against me. Okay, I didn't really believe that, but it was definitely a thought that ran through my mind.

Once back in my cell, I retreated back into my far back corner, which I'd made into a little den. With the three thin blankets we'd been given, I'd hung one from wall to wall in some rough indents in the stone which shielded me from view from the others, with only a small gap where I could see what was going on outside. The second one I'd bundled up and put against the wall to lean on, and the third I used to cover myself. All in all, I'd made the most out of a bad situation.

I sighed. My cheek was still throbbing, but at least my lip had stopped bleeding. I had supposed one of his rings had cut it.

"Amaya." I heard from another cell. I knew who it was: Fili. Of course he'd seen me come back in. "Amaya, please." His voice sounded hoarse. I sighed again. What harm could it be to see what he wanted? He'd left me alone for five days, not that I'd given him much choice.

Closing my eyes for a second, I carefully moved the blanket to the side (trust me, when it fell down, it took _absolutely ages _to get it to stay up again) and crawled out. Peering out through the bars, I could see Fili opposite. It was the first time I'd actually seen him since we'd been taken in, and I was shocked to say he looked worse. The bags under his eyes were darker, and his eyes looked empty. It physically pained me to see him this way, but I kept my composure. Let him say what he wants to first.

"Amaya." he repeated. "Please talk to me." I remained silent. "Miz sanâzyung." What did he want me to say to that? He knew that name wore me down. "Okay then. I'll talk, you listen. I am so, so sorry about what I said. I don't know why I said it. It was the forest, it was…getting into my head, twisting everything. I couldn't think straight! I love you, you know I do, with everything that I am…just the way you are." He took a deep breath. "I…I know you love me, okay, I know that. I know that you care about me. About all of us. But…sometimes, I just…I have doubts. I'm not tall, I'm not…I'm not anything that you're used to where you're from…and I sometimes feel like…I'm not good enough for you. And all those insecurities I took out on you." He knelt up and leaned his head against the bars. "You were right with everything that you said! You've done nothing but help us, even when you didn't need to. But please…please know that I am so, _so _sorry." All the while that he was saying this, I stared at him, my face expressionless. "Can you say something now?"

I licked my lips, wincing a little when I touched the cut. "Fili…I…" What was I to say for that? I chose my words carefully. "I…I know you're sorry, I can see that. But I can't forget what you said. You say all these things, but…what you said must have come from somewhere!" He opened his mouth to interrupt me, but I held up my hand to stop him. "And that doesn't excuse the fact that you left me! To die in the middle of the forest, because do you really think I would have survived long in that bloody place? If it wasn't for those spiders, I'd probably still be out there."

I could see a couple of tears run down his cheeks at my words. "Don't you say that. Don't _ever_ say that I would allow you to die. I wanted to go back to you, as soon as I took my first step. But we couldn't find the path again. And the entire time we wandered around that blasted forest going around and around in circles, all I could think of was trying to get back to you. About how I'd said that I would protect you. And I failed that! And then, after we got away from the spiders, there you were! I mean…you were glaring at me and that killed me inside because I knew it was my fault, but…I just…I'm sorry."

"Just…just give me some more time, okay." I said after a couple of minutes of just staring at him, giving him a small smile and retreating back into my hidey hole.

-8-

A couple of hours later, my food and water was delivered. It was the same as we usually got: a couple of slices of bread that was about a night of going stale, some fruit and a bit of cheese. Not overly inspiring, but it filled you up enough, at least.

Picking up my plate, I took it into my corner, but my appetite didn't come. I was too busy thinking. What Fili had said, there was no doubt in my mind that he had meant it. I knew him better than he thought I did, and I knew that he never would have said any of those things if it weren't for the forest. But he should have come to me with his doubts! (Of course I had my own, that we _incredibly _similar to his and I'd never told him about them. But that's not the point) How could he feel the way he did!? He was a prince; one of the most kind, caring, funny, good looking and overall amazing princes I'd ever met (albeit, the only other prince I'd met was Kili and now Legolas, but you get what I'm trying to say).

And despite all of that, I couldn't help but feel a little guilty as well; it wasn't entirely his fault, and yet he was the one apologizing. After all, hadn't I risen to his words? Responded exactly the way he was after through his sickness? I'd been the one who told him to leave. I'd been the one to say I didn't care if he left. But then I thought, was I really going to let him talk to me like that? No. I didn't then, and I wouldn't now. For God's sake, I was going around in circles here.

Nibbling a little on the bread, I listened to the others talk through the bars. I hadn't spoken to any of them while stuck in here either, but I also knew that if we were to _ever _get out of here, then I would have to get over these grudges. I couldn't live without Fili, I was going to forgive him sooner or later, why prolong it? And the others were like family to me now. I could tell they were sorry from the looks they had given me after the incident with the spiders.

No. Enough was enough. We could die in this place, and here I was, holding this petty grudge against them. My mind made up, I settled against the wall and listened to the dwarves' conversation. I'd talk to them later, tomorrow perhaps?

"I'll wager the sun's setting." Said Bofur. He'd taken to estimating when evening and morning came. I suppose it comforted him somewhat. I never knew whether he was right or not, but it helped me to have a rough idea on when to go to sleep and when to wake up. "It must be nearly dusk."

"We're never going to reach the mountain, are we?" asked Ori, sounding crushed. I thought back to my first night here. Ori had been so enthusiastic and excited to reach Erebor. The disappointment and sadness in his voice made me frown.

"Not stuck in here, you're not." Came a small voice from near my cell. And then, in the blink of an eye, Bilbo appeared. I could see the edge of his coat from the gap in my blanket, and quickly rushing out, I sat near the bars. How the _bloody hell_ had he done that?

"Bilbo!" exclaimed Balin.

"Shhh! There are guards nearby!" I gaped at him. This Hobbit was surprising me at every turn. "Now, I have a plan to get you out of here, but you will have to be patient. I only came here to tell you to be prepared. And for the love of God, stop antagonizing the Elves!" And suddenly he was gone again in the same manner that he had appeared. Not sure that that had really happened, I frowned. Bilbo had a plan, then? He was going to get us out? I wasn't exactly sure how, but what had we got to loose? He'd got us out of the situation with the trolls, hadn't he? He could get us out of this. We would reach Erebor, this I was determined to do.

-8-

A/N: *sigh*. So much feeling in this! And now Bilbo is here to save the day! Yay!

Let me know what you think!


	26. Chapter Twenty-Six

Chapter Twenty-Six

It was a couple of days later before we heard anything else from Bilbo. In these days, the dwarves didn't talk as much as before (I suppose there was only so much you could talk about before you ran out of topics), but when they did speak, I liked it better than the silence. The silence just seemed…eerie.

My lip had swollen since I'd been hit, throbbing painfully when I subconsciously bit my lip from nervousness, or just plain boredom. None of the dwarves knew of that little run-in with the king, but I dreaded to think of their reaction once they did. It wouldn't be good. To be honest, it had probably been hard for them to see. Only Fili and Balin could see me opposite; the others were either at the side of my cell or further along, or too far to the side opposite to look at me. I spent my time in my little hidey hole despite this, thinking over everything that happened. It all seemed so bizarre. Giant spiders, orcs, goblins, trolls…you just didn't get those things in York.

I'd actually just woken up when I heard a commotion outside. In the couple of days after Bilbo had left, my sleeping patterns had become messed up due to nightmares that kept waking me up. I had kept dreaming that I was in the middle of Mirkwood again, only this time, Fili was arguing with me again saying the same things as before, but he didn't come back and I was left alone to be caught by the spiders again…

It was a constant reminder of what Fili had said in the forest, and every time I woke up, I had to remind myself that he didn't mean it.

"Pssst." I heard outside my cell. "Amaya." Untangling myself from my blanket, I poked my head out to see almost all of the company barring Thorin, Dwalin and Gloin outside of my cell beside Bilbo, who was busy unlocking the door with a set of keys I had no idea how he got. How I never noticed him freeing the others, I'll never know.

"When did you all get here?"

"Shhh!" hushed Bilbo, giving me a stressed look. Gees, when did he get so bossy? "Come on. Quickly."

Taking a last, and quite frankly happy look at my cell, I grinned at the others, who were giving me a nervous look. They were right to as well; they'd left me in the forest as well, but right now, I was far too tired to care. Bilbo had already hurried off to free Dwalin by the time I faced Fili. He was giving me a nervous look as well, like I was about to start having a go at him again. Instead, I walked up to him (having to walk around the others who were following Bilbo), and stopped so I was mere centimetres in front of him.

"Hey you." I said, smiling.

"Amaya. I'm so so…" He started.

"Fili! Stop. I forgive you. It's kinda hard to stay mad at that face." I smirked, flicking his moustache.

Fili grinned, spinning me around. It was pretty strange being so happy in a place like this, but I went along with it. "I'm so h…wait a minute. Amaya…what happened to your lip?"

"Oh, this? Nothing! I just…cut it…walking into the…wall…" _Way to go Amaya. What the hell did you just say?_

"You cut it walking into the wall?" He asked, looking skeptical.

"Yeah. You know how clumsy I am." Well, at least that wasn't a lie.

"Amaya…"

"Come on, love birds! You can catch up later!" smirked Kili, jogging over to us. "We need to go. Bilbo's getting fidgety."

"I'm not dropping this." Dropping my eyes to the ground and sighing, I nodded and took a hold of his hand, smiling at the feel of it. After a week in that cell, and a further day and a bit on my own in the forest, I couldn't even begin to tell you how much it was for some actual bodily contact. It seemed like so long since I'd held Fili's hand, and I gave it a gentle squeeze as we walked down the stairs.

"I never imagined you would."

-8-

Fili didn't let go of my hand the entire time that we followed Bilbo. I had no idea where we were going (and it didn't seem like the others did either), but Bilbo had been good enough to get us out, so I trusted him nonetheless.

"I don't believe it." exclaimed Kili from in front of me. "We're in the cellars!"

"You were supposed to be leading us out, not further in!" shouted Bofur.

"I know what I'm doing!" countered Bilbo, looking increasingly frustrated.

"Shhh." I rolled my eyes. Bofur had been making more noise than Bilbo.

"This way." We all moved into the cellar, trying to be quiet. I'm emphasizing the word _trying_ here because I had no idea it was possible that they were actually louder trying to be silent than they were normally. In the cellar, I saw dozens of selves stacked with bottles from floor to ceiling. In the middle of the room were several barrels stacked onto their sides, and it was then that Bilbo's plan came into my mind.

"Bilbo, you have got to be kidding me." I hissed, peering behind to check we weren't being followed (I don't know who by, but I felt like I had to check anyway).

"Everyone, climb into the barrels, quickly!" replied Bilbo, ignoring me. I accepted that this was a good hiding place (well, maybe not good…but it was better than those dungeons at least), but what were we going to do once we were in them?

"Are you mad?!" asked Dwalin, raising his voice. "They'll find us!"

"No, no, they won't, I promise you. Please, please, you _must _trust me!" I furrowed my eyebrows as the dwarves argued amongst themselves. If they didn't hurry up, we _would _be caught.

"Do as he says!" commanded Thorin after a few moments. He received a few bewildered stares from the others (including me, I must admit…I mean, it wasn't everyday you heard Thorin actually listening to Bilbo!), but in the end, no one could exactly question what Thorin had said so it was a mad dash to clamber in the barrels at the bottom. I stayed behind, preferring to be in the ones at the top. All that ran through my head was the thought of the barrels at the top breaking and a load of muscley dwarves landing on me at the bottom causing me to be squished.

"Amaya. Come on, quickly." Said Fili, pulling me towards the others. I'd been happy at the constant contact that I'd had since we'd got out the dungeons, but if I was being honest, it scared me a little now. He was holding my hand a little tighter than he usually did, and I kept catching him giving me fleeting glances like I was about to leg it in the opposite direction. As if. "Up you get." I had to climb on some of the bottom barrels to reach the top one I was in (accidently stepping on Dori's head in the meantime. Don't worry, he was fine!). The barrel wasn't exactly comfy; it was cramped and smelt a little, but it did the job of hiding us well enough. Kind of. It would have been helpful if there were lids at least.

Fili climbed into the barrel underneath mine (well, they were all underneath mine since I was at the top, but he was _directly _underneath mine) and then we just…waited.

"What do we do now?" asked Bofur, impatiently.

"Hold your breath." Came the reply.

"Hold our…" I muttered, sticking my upper body out of the barrel (quite a difficult feat may I say) to look at the Hobbit, who was still standing there. "Bilbo, what the _hell_ do you mean by that?!"

I got no reply. Instead, Bilbo walked over to a lever that was built into the floor a few metres away and pulled it, causing the floor to tilt downwards and the barrels to start rolling. Retreating back inside the barrel, I groaned. _This _was Bilbo's grand plan?

Rolling down the hill, there was a moment when the barrels flew through the air and I had half a mind to scream (not that I did of course. If I did, the elves would know for sure where we were). It was only a few seconds later when my barrel became submerged in very cold water. Deciding it was safe to pop my head out once I'd resurfaced, I saw that we were probably in a river underneath the cellar we were just in.

"Bilbo, a little bit of warning wouldn't have gone amiss." I said, giving him a blank expression. I did feel quite sorry for him though. Despite him coming up with the plan to get us all out, he'd managed to leave himself without a barrel, and was currently trying to hold onto the nearest dwarf's barrel to keep himself afloat.

"I did tell you to hold your breath." He replied breathlessly, giving me a slight glare to which I just grinned.

"Well done, Master Baggins." Said Thorin, ignoring our conversation. Bilbo just gave an embarrassed wave of his hand in thanks before spluttering the word 'Go'. "Come on, let's go."

It was harder than I imagined to steer the barrel in the direction that I wanted it to go. We had to use our hands to push ourselves forward, and while the others were doing perfectly well, I was banging and crashing into everyone and everything around me. Despite all that, we did manage to get out of the cave like place we were in and into the sunlight. Unfortunately our relief was short-lived as we floated towards a waterfall.

"Hold on!" Bracing myself, I held my breath and held the side of my barrel in a death grip as our barrels tumbled down the waterfall. I could hear the others yelling, though what they were yelling I couldn't be sure due to the fact that I was screaming myself at this point. Taking quick glances around as my barrel tossed and turned, I caught glimpses of elves running along the banks of the river.

"Don't these people ever stop?" I yelled, as the gate that we were floating towards shut, preventing us going any further.

"No!" shouted Thorin, who was at the front of the group banging on the gate with Fili. It was at this moment (as if things could get any worse), that a huge gang of Orcs turned up. Where they had come from I had no idea, but as they started to kill the Elves my panic levels went sky high.

"Watch out!" warned Bofur, who was in a barrel next to me. "Those are Orcs!"

There wasn't really much any of us could do at this point; we had no weapons and it wasn't like we were going anywhere. All we could do was stand in our barrels and wait. Or that was what I thought.

"Kili!" I heard Dwalin yell. I looked to my left as I saw Kili leap out of his barrel and run towards the lever that had shut the gates. I almost couldn't look as he caught a sword that Dwalin had wrested from one of the Orcs and tried to fight them off, and it was only due to the others that he'd avoided being stabbed when his back was turned. But they could only hold them off for so long, and my eyes widened as Kili was suddenly shot in the leg with an arrow, causing him to stagger to the ground before he opened the gates.

I don't know what possessed me to do this, had no idea what ran through my head (although it was probably something very stupid), but I found myself jumping out of my barrel and swimming over to the ledge where Kili was. He was lying on the ground huddled over clutching at the arrow in his leg, clearly in agony. I mean, anyone would be with an arrow though their leg, wouldn't they? I winced when I saw something black coming out of the wound; this clearly wasn't any ordinary arrow either. _It's a good thing I've grown used to the sight of blood_.

"Kili!" I yelled, trying to get him to listen. "Kili! Come on! You've got to get up!" I could vaguely see from the corner of my eye more and more Orcs coming. "Kili, now!" Crouching down to put my arms around to haul him up, I could hear the other Dwarves yelling at me and Kili. "Come on, Kili. Just a little bit further." Let me tell you, hauling a very heavy, physically drained dwarf up some steps while pulling a very heavy lever to open a gate is a very hard feat. I have absolutely no idea how I did it, but from the cheering I could hear below, it seemed like I'd done a good job if you…you know…take away the fact that my legs felt like they were going to give out. "Okay, Kili, I need you to jump into that barrel. Go!" In the end, I had to give him a little push (saying that I would feel bad about it later) so that he landed in the empty barrel floating along below.

"Amaya!" I heard Fili yell. Looking down again, I saw that he was holding his barrel against the side of the rock, leaning to the side so I could jump in. Of course, by opening the gate, I'd obviously let my empty barrel float away, and it had been pure luck that Kili had found his (or it might have been mine; who cared, really?) Ignoring my fears of missing the barrel (or even landing half in the barrel and half out, which would probably be even more painful), I made the leap of faith (maybe a bit dramatic) and actually managed to land in Fili's barrel. It was _a bit _painful, but I managed it.

"Don't you _ever _do that again." Growled Fili, as he let go of the rock to let the barrel rush after the others.

"Okay…" I muttered. "Not like I just saved your brother or anythi…argh!" I ducked as an arrow sailed past my cheek.

"Amaya! Stay down!" said Fili, hacking at a nearby Orc with a random sword he'd obtained.

"Fili, I can help!" It was only a second after that another arrow went sailing past my face. "No, yeah…you're right. I'll just crouch down here being all useful and stuff…" How _on the hell_ were we going to get out of _this _one?

-8-

A/N: oh my god! It has been SO LONG since my last update, but things have just been so hectic with college and everything right now, so forgive me, please! But here we are, and I'm not even keen on this, but it's better than nothing, and Bard is going to be coming in very soon!

But in the mean time, review, favourite, PM, the usual! :)


	27. Chapter Twenty-Seven

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Crouching down in a cramped barrel while a rather stocky dwarf tried to fight off oncoming Orcs wasn't exactly comfy. I had no clue on what was going on outside of the barrel (other than what was directly above me), and had to try and avoid Fili's feet which were moving almost everywhere inside the barrel to try and attack from all sides.

To add to my discomfort, it appeared that we were floating down some pretty extreme currents, so I was being tossed and turned into the sides of the barrel (which hurt, let me tell you) and I was getting soaked through from the water splashing in. Now don't get me wrong, I was thankful that I was not getting shot at by arrows like the others were, but it was _very_ uncomfortable in there!

"Fili!" I shouted, attempting to get up for a minute. "Fili, what is going on?"

"Just stay down!" he yelled back, wildly gesturing with his left hand before cutting down an Orc. Breathing deeply, I retreated back inside the barrel feeling utterly and completely useless.

It felt like hours before the yelling and clashing of swords finally stopped. I could only guess that we had outrun (well…outfloat I guess…) the Orcs and the currents had finally calmed down.

"Fili." I tugged on his leg. "Can I come up now? While this is a very nice view…" Of course now that everything had stopped thrashing around, my face was directly in front of his crotch. Not that I was complaining. It_ was _a very nice view. "…it is not very comfy down here." Taking the hand he'd held down, I smirked when I saw the faint blush on his cheeks. "How close did those Orcs get?" I asked him, wiping a small trail of blood that dripped off a cut on his cheek, frowning.

"Close enough." He replied, taking my hand and rubbing the back of it with his thumb. "Now are you going to tell me what happened to your lip?" Damn, this dwarf forgets nothing…

"You don't believe that I walked into the wall?" I asked, knowing full well that he didn't as he raised his eyebrows. "I don't really think this is the right time…"

"Amaya, _tell me_."

Giving in at the pleading look on Fili's face, I sighed. "Okay, but…don't get mad! Remember when Legolas let me out of my cell?" he nodded. "And you know he was taking me to talk to the king?"

Fili's eyes widened. "_He _did this to you?"

"Well, technically…look, it's nothing to get angry about!"

"Nothing to get angry about?" Fili replied, raising his voice causing the others' heads to turn towards us. "Amaya, he hit you!"

"I know, but I'm fine now! And…I did provoke him a little bit, I guess." I defended.

"Amaya, that is no excuse! Why would he hit you?"

"Well, he asked me what we were doing in his lands, and I said I couldn't tell him. To which he asked what you'd all done to earn my loyalty and from a human woman no less." I pulled a face remembering that part. "So I said that it was none of his business. So he said that he was the king and I had no right to talk to him like that, to which I said he wasn't my king and I didn't take orders from him. And then he slapped me. But he didn't _hit _me per say. One of his rings must have cut my lip."

"Amaya…that doesn't make it any better!" I looked down as his expression softened. "But I also wonder how we've earned your loyalty so much." He rubbed his thumb over the cut on my lip, causing me to wince a little at the pressure despite how gentle he was being.

"You are kidding right? You lot have taken me in when I had no where else to go and treated me like one of your own, and you're wondering how you've earned my loyalty. Silly dwarf." I smiled, giving him a brief kiss on the nose.

"Anything behind us?" I heard Thorin yell.

"Not that I can see." Replied Balin.

"I think we've outrun the Orcs." Added Bofur.

"Not for long; we've lost the current." Said Thorin. Ah, so that's why everything seemed so calm.

"Bofur is half drowned." Said Dwalin. I looked towards Bofur and saw that what Dwalin had said wasn't far off. Bofur was soaked head to foot and his hat was drooping past his eyes dripping heavily with water. I didn't even _know _where Bilbo was. He wasn't in any barrel I could see.

"Make for the shore. Come on, let's go!" It was even harder trying to steer a barrel with two people in it, and by the time we'd managed to steer towards the shore, the others had already climbed out of their own and were wringing their clothes out. The next problem we had was trying to actually get _out _of the barrel. We had very little room to move.

"Can someone, er…try to help us please?" I called. Hearing me, Bofur waddled over to us (no doubt weighed down by his clothes), grabbed me by my underarms and lifted me up out of the barrel. Thanking him, and wondering how the hell he had managed to actually lift me up, I looked around for Kili. The last time I'd seen him, he'd jumped into his barrel, causing the shaft of the arrow to break off. Seeing him now, he was sat down on a rock near the shore wincing every time he prodded the wound.

"I really don't think you should be doing that." I said, kneeling down beside him. "Here, let me look at it."

"Amaya, no, you don't need to…" He winced.

"Kili. Seriously, this needs looking at." Ripping his trousers a little so I could get a better look (feeling a little awkward but glad that the wound was fairly far down his leg), I noticed that the wound didn't look too bad. The arrow hadn't gone very deep so I didn't think there would be a lot of damage. "I don't think it looks too bad, but I think you should get Oin to look at it. I'm no expert."

"Kili!" Looks like Fili made it out of the barrel. "Brother, are you okay?"

"I'm fine!"

"I'll go get Oin." I said, giving the two a minute alone. "Oin! You need to look at Kili's leg. I think it needs binding or bandaging or whatever the hell people call it." Oin gave me a quick nod before striding off to where the two brothers were intensely talking and I found myself wondering over to where Bilbo was sat shivering. "You look freezing."

I almost laughed when Bilbo gave me a _very _sarcastic look. "W…well, I d…didn't have a…a barrel to r…ride in, did I?"

"That's true." I replied, sitting down. "I'd give you my cloak but considering it's wet through, I don't think it'll help much."

"I…it's fine."

"Thorin!" I called. "We need to get someone warm! Bilbo's freezing and it's nearly sunset."

"You're right." He said. "I suggest we head to Lake-Town. Kili, can you walk?" His nephew looked up and gave a brief nod of the head. "Good. Fili, Kili, Amaya and Mr. Baggins will accompany me to speak to the Master."

-8-

The walk to Lake-Town was relatively quiet and rather slow. Kili was having to lean against Fili as he limped towards it and Bilbo was obviously developing a cold if his constant sneezing and sniffling was anything to go by.

Thankfully the walk wasn't that long, but by the time we'd reached the bridge that lead to the town, which was _actually _in the middle of a lake (who knew!), it was already nighttime. We managed to walk into the town without much trouble- the guards on the entrance to the town weren't good at their jobs it seemed- and although we didn't see many people walking about, we did hear quite a bit of shouting and laughter coming from not far off. Thankfully this meant that it wasn't necessary that we sneaked around, which was good for us as Kili's limping was quite noisy on the wooden floors of the town.

Stepping through the door where the rest of the guards seemed to be gathered seemed quite dramatic. As soon as they noticed we were there, they leapt up grabbing the nearest weapon they could find.

"Who are you and what do you want?" asked the one nearest the front.

"I am Thorin, son of Thrain son of Thror, King under the Mountain." Announced Thorin stepping forward. "I have come back. I wish to see the Master of your town." It was strange what reaction this announcement caused. Some of the guards looked shocked, others looked on in disbelief and a few grinned and raised their eyebrows to the person next to them. I wasn't sure whether these reactions were good or not, but opted to remain quiet. Thorin seemed to have everything under control.

"And who are these?" asked the guard, pointing to the rest of us. I gave them an awkward smile before shuffling towards Bilbo who was still sniffling.

"These are the sons of my father's daughter." Replied Thorin. _Seems like a pretty fancy way to say nephews_, I thought. "Fili and Kili of the race of Durin, and Mr Baggins and Miss Osbourne who have travelled with us out of the West."

"If you have come in peace, lay down your arms." I looked around. Did we look like we had weapons? We looked pitiful at the most since we'd left them with the others. We figured that if Lake-Town were to help us, arriving with weapons wouldn't be the best start.

"We have none. Take us to your Master." At least he gets to the point. Besides, Kili looked like he was overdue a long nap, Bilbo was looking very sorry for himself, and I was very hungry.

"He is at a feast."

"Then all the more reason for taking us to him!" exclaimed Fili. "We are worn and famished after our long road and we have sick companions! Now make haste and let us have no more words, or your master may have something to say to you!" I stared at Fili in shock. I had never heard him speak so harshly to someone but I had to admit, I kind of liked it.

"Follow me, then." Said the guard, begrudgingly. Following the guard, I found myself walking besides Fili. Kili had opted to walk on his own, obviously not wanting to show any weakness in front of the guards. At least the colour was coming back to his cheeks.

We didn't walk very far until we reached what I assumed was the great hall. The voices inside were very loud (obviously part of what we heard earlier) and as we walked in, I saw many long tables full of food lined with people. Thankfully, their reaction once they'd seen us was more peaceful than the guard's had been, but it didn't stop the staring and the pointing. It was quite uncomfortable truth be told.

"I am Thorin, son of Thrain son of Thror King under the Mountain! I return!" boomed Thorin before the guard could get a word out. _He certainly knows how to make an entrance._ The man who I assumed was the Master, for he was in the largest chair in the middle of the highest table, leapt to his feet. However before he could say anything, a couple of Elves who were next to him interrupted.

"These are prisoners of our king that have escaped!" one cried, pointing.

"Oh no…" I muttered, clutching Fili's hand. I _really _didn't want to go back into that dungeon.

"Is this true?" asked the Master. Already, I did not like this guy. He seemed sleazy, his belly seemed to stick out a mile from his body and he eyed us with contempt and suspicion. I opted to give him the same look back.

"It is true that we were wrongfully imprisoned by the Elvenking and imprisoned without cause as we journeyed back to our own land." Replied Thorin, glaring up at them. "But I speak now to the Master of Lake-Town." I waited as Thorin paused for a moment, adding dramatic effect I didn't doubt. "We have come to reclaim our homeland. I remember this town and the great days of old. Fleets of boats lay at harbor, filled with silks and fine gems. This was no forsaken town on a lake! This was the centre of all trade in the North. I wish to see those days return. I would relight the great forges of the dwarves and send wealth and riches flowing once more from the halls of Erebor!" I looked around to see people nodding to what Thorin was saying. It seemed to have gone down well.

"Death!" I heard someone yell from behind. Standing in the doorway, a crowd had gathered, obviously hearing some rumour or another of our arrival. The man that had spoken was at the head of the group and was frowning at us with furrowed eyebrows. "That is what you will bring upon us. Dragon-fire and ruin. If you awaken that beast, it will destroy us all." I looked down with a frown. What this guy had said certainly had ground. I'd not really thought about what we were going to do about the dragon in the mountain; I hadn't really thought that far ahead. How were thirteen dwarves, a Hobbit and me going to take down a _dragon?_ It seemed like a death wish. Around me, I could see people thinking the same thing.

"You can listen to this naysayer, but I promise you this; if we succeed, all will share in the wealth of the mountain. You will have enough gold to rebuild Esgaroth ten times over!"

"All of you!" yelled the man. "Listen to me! You must listen! Have you forgotten what happened to Dale?" The people around us looked down shaking their heads. "Have your forgotten those who died in the firestorm?" A chorus of 'No' sounded throughout the room. "And for what purpose? The blind ambition of a mountain-king so driven by greed, he could not see beyond his own desire!" I clutched at Fili's hand, wondering what was going through everyone's heads. Things were obviously not going the way we had hoped.

"Now, now." Said the Master. "We must not be too quick to blame, any of us. Let us not forget, Bard, that it was Girion, Lord of Dale, your ancestor, who failed to kill the beast!" _Wow, well _that _certainly seemed like you were quick to lay blame._

"It's true, sire." Said a slimy looking man behind the Master. "We all know the story: arrow after arrow he shot, each one missing its mark."

"You have no right, _no right_ to enter that mountain!" yelled Bard, ignoring the Master and advancing on Thorin.

"I have the only right." Growled Thorin in response. He turned towards the Master. "Will you see the prophecy fulfilled? Will you share in the great wealth of our people? What say you?"

There was a moment of silence as we all waited in bated breath as the Master paused. "I say unto you…" he pointed a finger at Thorin. "Welcome! Welcome and thrice welcome, King under the Mountain!" I released a breath I didn't know I'd been holding and gave a brief smile. The people of Lake-Town were going to help us, but as the other members of the company ran into the room out of breath, I couldn't help but worry. As Bard was speaking, I had found myself agreeing to a lot of what he was saying (apart from Thorin having no right to the Mountain; he _did_ have the only right). But as Fili shot me a grin leading me towards a table full of food, I made myself forget about my troubles and try to enjoy myself. I could worry about this in the morning.

-8-

A/N: arghh! An update and let me tell you, this chapter was a bitch to write! Not one I'm keen on (and I'm finding myself saying that a lot, which is annoying), but it's the best I could come up with. I actually watched Battle of the Five Armies today, and while I won't reveal anything (no spoilers in this author's note! Although later chapters may go along the lines of the film. Not sure when those would be, so be pre-warned if you're not going to watch it for a while), I can say it was very good!

I tried to combine bits in the book with the film; the poisoned arrow wouldn't have worked since Tauriel's not in this which is way I didn't include that, just so you all know.

Anyway, please remember to review and favourite!


	28. Chapter Twenty-Eight

Chapter Twenty-Eight

It turned out that the people of Lake-Town knew how to throw a great feast. They had more food brought out- a whole arrangement of fish, meat, fruit and vegetables, cakes and cheeses- and flagons upon flagons of ale and beers. They also had people playing instruments in the corner providing music causing many people who were already drunk to make fools of themselves trying to dance. I won't mention any names, *cough cough* Bofur and Bombur. The Elves, who had seemed very angry that we'd been welcomed into the town, had left the hall pretty swiftly, not that many people actually seemed to care. In fact, I'd say that it lightened the mood.

I had opted to stick just to water for the night, knowing that if I started drinking here, I would probably get very, very drunk. This, however, did not stop the other members of the company who had arrived mere minutes after the Master bid us welcome. In fact, it seemed to me like they had decided to get as drunk as possible.

Bilbo, whose cold seemed to worsen each minute, had opted to only eat enough to fill his stomach before retiring for the night into the allotted rooms we'd been given (although I did see that he'd taken a few cakes and cheeses into his room with him). Kili was also having to take it easy. His leg had been looked at and bandaged a little better than Oin had been able to do- the supplies here was better of course- and after he'd dismissed the healer (rather hurriedly at that) he'd quickly delved into the food and alcohol. Fili had decided to join his brother in the merry-makings, and although he wasn't drinking anywhere near as much as the rest of them, it was still obvious he was getting a little tipsy.

"Not joining in with the others?" I asked, sitting down next to Thorin. He'd been talking to the Master for a while, gritting his teeth and using fake-courtesy for a lot of it if his facial expressions were anything to go by.

"No." he replied, giving me a glance. "Why are _you_ not joining in with the others?" I pursed my lips aware he'd turned the situation around to focus on me. Truthfully, I couldn't get those worries out of my head; how were we going to defeat Smaug? There was only fifteen of us, how could we reclaim an entire mountain? Would the Orcs come back? Would we even live past the end of this journey?

"I prefer to just sit and watch." I said, not wanting to share my worries with anyone, especially Thorin. Because that's all they were: _worries_. Or that was what I tried to tell myself. "The others seem to be enjoying themselves, though."

"Indeed. That's good, they deserve to have some fun after the past few weeks." I nodded my head in agreement, it had been an _awful_ few weeks.

"Amaya!" I heard, yelled across the room. "Amaya, miz sanâzyung!" Ah, and here was Fili, who'd got a lot more tipsy than a few moments before. Walking up to me (although it could probably be described more as strutting), he reached down and pulled me up out of my seat. "Come on, you didn't think that I'd forgotten about you, did you? Dance with me!"

"Fili, I, argh!" Nearly tripping over as he spun my around, I placed my hands firmly on his shoulders, looking him in the eye. "Fili, are you sure this is a good idea?"

"I don't know what you're taking about!" he replied, a huge, side-splitting grin plastered across his face. Honestly, I hadn't seen him look this happy in _such _a long time.

"Fili, you're drunk." I said, trying to give him my sternest face and ultimately failing as I laughed at his shocked face.

"I'm not drunk!" he insisted, spinning us around. "I'm happy. Is that okay? Besides, dwarves can handle their alcohol."

"Yes, I can see that by the way Bofur is collapsed on the floor." I replied, rolling my eyes.

"Okay then, _I_ can handle my alcohol. Better?"

I giggled. "A little, I guess. But _why _are you so happy, then?"

"Why am I so happy? Is being with you not enough? Being with the woman that I love?" He took one of my hands and brought it to his lips. "I would think that that would make me pretty happy."

"Okay, I'll give you that one." I said, taking his hand and threading my fingers through his. "Then answer me this one. What have you been hiding since Beorn's house?" His expression faltered for a second before his smile came back.

"What?" he asked, feigning innocence.

"Don't give me that puppy eyed look." I scolded. "I know you've been hiding something. I'm not going to push it, it'd just like to know."

I stared at him as he thought, wondering what could be so secretive that he couldn't just come out and tell me.

"Come with me." I furrowed my eyebrows as he started to drag me away.

"What? Fili…where are we going? What about the feast?"

"Screw the feast!" he laughed.

"You're starting to sound like me more everyday…" I murmured. "But seriously Fee, what _are _you doing?"

"I'm showing you what I've been hiding." Not saying anymore as I jogged behind him towards God knows where, I couldn't help the excitement at _finally _knowing. I'd almost completely forgotten about it after all the drama with the Elves and the Orcs and I wasn't sure what had caused me to remember tonight but I was glad that I had.

It was only a couple of minutes after we had set off that we arrived at where our rooms were. We'd make a quick stop before enjoying the feast to dump any surviving belongings (at this point, it was make-shift weapons we'd found, coats and cloaks) and after a bit of a discussion, Kili had agreed to room with Bofur and Bombur so I could stay with Fili. Not that I was expecting this (I was fairly certain it was 'forbidden' or something to share a bed with someone without being married) but I wasn't complaining. I guess the others thought that we'd been basically sleeping together on the ground most nights, a bed shouldn't be much different. That, or the others didn't know. I was betting on the second option.

Opening the door to our room, Fili let go of my hand and made a bee-line straight to his coat. Closing the door behind me, I saw on the bed next to where he was riffling and waited.

"Ah ha!" he exclaimed, pulling out a small object that I failed to see. "Okay. I haven't completely finished it yet, so please bare that in mind, but…"

"Fili. It's fine, just…show me."

Hearing him swallow, he turned to face me and opened his hand. Resting in it was a small golden ring. It was fairly simple, but I could see small carvings in the metal in a language that looked familiar but I was still unable to read. I couldn't help but marvel at the precision that it would have taken to engrave _that _much detail into such a small object and although I had absolutely _no _idea what it said, I loved it.

Aware that I'd been staring at his hand for quite a while, I looked up to see his expression. It was crossed between hopeful, excited and nervousness. A lot of nervousness actually.

"Fili, what is this?" I whispered, reaching out to hold it. "It's…beautiful."

I saw him smile. "I found it. A while ago, actually, back in the troll caves. I wasn't sure why I took it if I'm honest, but…I overheard a conversation you had with Bilbo a while ago, I can't actually remember _specifically _when, but you were both talking about marriage traditions and I heard you say how…when a man proposes where you're from, he kneels on the ground and gives the woman a ring. So, I…made this for you. Well, not _made _exactly, but I engraved it…" He cleared his throat, no doubt to try and stop his rambling. "I…wanted you to have something that reminded you of home and, while this isn't actually _from _your home I thought it would…remind you of it."

I sniffed, brushing away a couple of tears that fell. "Fee, this is…this is beyond a doubt, the most amazing, thoughtful thing anyone has ever done for me, I…don't know what to say."

Fili grinned and leaned his forehead against mine. "I know we've touched on the subject of marriage, but I want to give you something more official than…just a conversation." Still sniffing, I nodded my head handing him the ring back. "I'm not sure where it would go though. Is there a specific place?"

"Fourth finger on my left hand." I murmured, holding my hand out. "I can't believe you did this. What does it say?"

"It's miz sanâzyung, written in Dwarf runes."

"Okay…although you could have said anything and I would have believed you." I laughed. "I'm guessing Kili knew about this."

"Yep. He helped me quite a bit, truth be told."

"Well, you did a…a very good job." A smiled, capturing his lips in a brief kiss trying to remember the last time I'd had a chance to. It had to have been weeks ago. "We should probably get back to the feast now." I whispered.

"Or, for a better idea, we could stay here." He suggested, moving me backwards further onto the bed. "I think that is the much more preferable option." He said, moving his head down towards my neck.

Trying hard to focus on anything but the feel of him, I stuttered, "Well…yes, but…we should really…be, urgh…"

"Be going where?" he asked, smirking up at me.

"Be going…forget it." Sitting upright, I forced Fili's head up so it was level with mine and crashed my lips against his, tangling my fingers into his hair tugging slightly on some of his braids. I moved to straddle his thighs, gasping when his hands moved to dig his fingers into my skin keeping me there. Fili took full advantage of that, invading my mouth with his tongue causing me to groan into the kiss.

"You're going to kill me." He muttered after several moments. I smirked as my hands wandered down his chest to the bottom of his shirt, fiddling with the edge of the fabric.

"Now why would I do that?" I asked, giving him a small smile before lifting his shirt up over his head. I frowned when I saw the cut on his chest from the when we were fighting the Orcs after the Goblin caves. It had healed fairly well, although correct to my predications, it was definitely starting to scar. Running my fingers across it, I leaned forward and followed the trial with my lips, peppering the wound with small kisses. I smiled against his skin as I heard him sigh and moved up to kiss his lips again. I could taste the ale that he'd been drinking and as we broke the kiss he lifted my shirt up over my head. I had to give him credit as he figured out how to unhook my bra (they didn't have them here, of course) and I smiled shyly at him as I fought the urge to wrap my arms around myself. _Don't I just pick the best times to get self-conscious._

Fili ran his hands down my sides, obviously sensing my discomfort. "You are perfect. Don't ever think any differently." Smiling nervously, I rested my own hand on his chest as he lowered me down.

"I really…I don't think that we should be…I thought we were supposed to wait until…"

"We are. But we are to awaken a dragon in a few days and I do not wish to die without making love to you at least once. But if you don't want to, then I will stop…"

"No!" I interrupted. "No, I…I want to. I want you."

-8-

A/N: phew! What a chapter! Not the longest one but it is purely a filler. I didn't go into any more detail or anything towards the end due to the fact that I would have to change the story rating. I don't know whether anyone would want it changing to M as an added chapter or a separate chapter to the story…you'd have to let me know and I would try to attempt it (as I've never written anything like that before)!

But they won't be staying in Lake-Town long and the drama has not even started yet!

Let me know what you think by reviewing! :)


	29. Chapter Twenty-Nine

Chapter Twenty-Nine

I woke up the following morning to find myself unable to move. Cracking my eyes open, I saw that my head was resting in the crook of Fili's neck, my legs were tangled with his and his arms were wrapped firmly around my waist. Lifting my head up slightly, I blinked in surprise to see Fili already awake and looking at me with a soft smile.

"Good morning." He said, still smiling.

"Good morning." I replied, lifting my hand up to fiddle with his moustache- something that was beginning to become a habit.

"Did you sleep well?" he asked.

"I did. But I seem to be unable to move. Do you happen to know anything about that?" I smirked.

"Nope. Sorry. Looks like you've got to stay there." Rolling my eyes at the grin that covered Fili's face, I moved my head back down to where it was previously.

"Do you know when we're leaving?" I asked after a few minutes. The feeling of dread whenever I thought about that mountain returned but I tried not to let it show. I would _not _ruin this moment.

"In the next day or two, I imagine. Thorin needs to organize any supplies that we need with the Master." I laughed at the annoyed look Fili had when he mentioned the Master. Not that I blamed him; the Master seemed like a horrible human being; I was definitely _not _a fan of the man.

Nodding at what he said, I closed my eyes again. "We don't have to get up yet, do we?"

"Judging from how high the sun is in the sky, I would say so, yes." Came the reply.

"What?" I asked, trying to shoot up only to be dragged back down. "How is it _that _late in the morning?"

"Well, we went to sleep, and you only just woke up. I imagine you were tired after the past few weeks." His hand came up to stroke my hair. "Besides, I swear that I'd died and gone to heaven when I woke up and saw you lying next to me. I didn't want to disturb you."

"How long have you been awake?" I asked, furrowing my eyebrows.

"A couple of hours."

"So…you've just been watching me sleep the entire time?" Feeling my cheeks blush at his nod, I pushed against his side trying to get up. "You know, I'm beginning to feel that you don't actually want to stay here."

"No, trust me, I would like nothing more than to stay here all day… but I'm hungry!" I said, now aware of how empty my stomach felt. I gave him my best puppy dog look. "Please? I'll be _very _grateful."

"Oh really?" He raised an eyebrow. "How grateful?"

Moving (in the limited space I'd been given), I hovered my lips just in front of his. "_Extremely _grateful." Feeling his arms loosen around me, I moved my face a tad closer, smirked at the way Fili looked down at my lips, rolled to the side and, unfortunately for me, ended up over the side of the bed landing on the floor. "Owww…"

"Are you okay?" asked Fili, his head hanging over the side of the bed. Seeing my nod, he smirked. "Bet you wish you were still up here now, huh?"

"Shut up." Heaving myself up, stretching my legs which felt very stiff, I started to hunt around the room in search of my clothes, which had apparently scattered everywhere although God only knows how.

"You know what, I take it back. This is a very nice view." _Oh yeah, I'm naked. Well, I hope he's had a nice show._ Pushing the feeling of embarrassment to the side, I bent down (trying to ignore his staring) and picked up my clothes, wasting no time in putting them back on. We hadn't been given any new clothes (that obviously wasn't part of the service in this town, not that I expected it to be) so I was having to put on my existing ones, which needless to say, did not have a very flattering look or smell. Not that I cared anymore.

"Are you actually going to get changed this morning, or are you just going to lay there staring at me?" I asked, smiling softly so as to not sound too harsh. "You know what, don't answer that. But can you please hurry? I really am hungry and I don't know the way back to the hall."

-8-

It took fifteen minutes for me and Fili to finally get dressed, more to the fact that he kept trying to push us back on the bed than anything else. It took nearly all of my self-restraint to tell him no, I'll tell you that now. That dwarf was very hard to say no to.

"Here they are!" cried Kili as we entered the hall. "We were beginning to wonder where the two of you had got to."

"I was tired." I mumbled, my eyes focused on the remainder of the food on the table. It looked very nice. "Fili led me to where we were sleeping; I couldn't remember the way."

"Oh yes, I'm sure that was it." replied Kili, a knowing smirk on his face.

"Kili!" interrupted Fili.

"All I'm saying is that you better not let Thorin know. I doubt he'd be very impressed. You know what he'd say about it."

"And how do _you _know?" I asked. "We've been in here for all of ten seconds!"

"Blondie, I've known my brother my entire life. And I've been travelling with the two of you giving each other sickening looks for months. You think I don't know when…"

"Alright! I get it." I grimaced.

"Plus, I went to try and find you both when you didn't come back after a while and lets just say I am scarred by some of the things I heard…"

"Oh my God!" I shouted into my hands, which were now covering my face which I'm sure resembled a tomato.

"Don't worry. I ran out of there as fast as my injured leg could take me." He grinned. "Although may I just say…"

"No you may not say." said Fili, glaring at his brother. "How is your leg?" he asked gently, after a few more seconds.

"Better. I've had the bandages changed already this morning and Oin says that it should heal perfectly fine."

"Will it be alright in time to leave?" I asked, taking a bite out of a bread bun. I couldn't imagine Thorin telling Kili to leave- he was his nephew after all- but if Kili's leg wasn't good enough for when we left, I didn't know what Thorin would do.

"Yes! I told everyone, it's nothing! Just a scratch. Nothing will stop me from helping to reclaim Erebor."

"Okay, okay. I was just asking. No need to snap." Taking a glance around the room, I watched as Bilbo shuffled into the hall, later than me and Fili had been and looking very sorry for himself. "Bilbo!"

"Hmmm…?" I waved the Hobbit over to where we were sitting with a smile.

"How ya doing, Bilbo ol' pal?"

"…What?"

I chuckled at the confused look on his face before rephrasing my question. "How are you this morning? How's your cold?"

"Oh! I'm…" He coughed and gave a little sniff. "I've been better. But I think it's…" Another sniff. "It's getting better."

"Are you sure?" I asked, moving away when he sneezed. "You sound pretty ill." I grabbed another bread roll, realising that I'd finished my first. "I'm not making you feel any better, am I?"

"No, Miss Amaya. Not really."

-8-

True to Fili's word, we only stayed in Lake-Town for another three days before setting off to leave. Kili's leg seemed to be healing reasonably well (or at the very least, he was barely limping anymore) and Bilbo's cold was beginning to go (he still gave the occasional sneeze and sniffle though).

I'd spent the remaining three days training with the others due to the fact that I'd barely got chance to in the past weeks due to all the running and, well, being captured. I was quite proud of how much I'd remembered since my first lesson, and although it left me very tired at the end of the day, I was feeling very proud of myself.

Nevertheless, the feeling of dread about the mountain grew as time ticked by. The less time I knew we had in Lake-Town, the worse the feeling got; add that to the odd looks I saw in Thorin's eyes as he looked at the mountain and I was feeling very uneasy.

Despite all of that, I spent each night with Fili, who allowed me to forget all of these feelings. I could honestly say that those nights were some of the best nights of my life and I was sure that those memories would get me through the next few days in potentially awakening a dragon. Something told me I would need all the good memories I could get.

The people of Lake-Town had offered us small boats to get to the Lonely Mountain; a quarter full of each was filled with various supplies that Thorin had managed to bargain for. The men that had been picked to row the boats (because I highly doubt they volunteered for the job) looked like they would rather be anywhere other than where they were and kept giving the mountain worried looks as if Smaug was going to fly out and burn us all this very second. I didn't blame them.

The ride to Erebor seemed very long and slow. Sharing a boat with Bofur, Bilbo and Bifur definitely made the journey a little more bearable though. It seemed that nothing dampened Bofur's mood as he told story after story, all of which left me in stitches. Occasionally when our boats lined up, Fili gave me a worried look to which I replied with a simple smile.

When Thorin had said that Kili was to go with him, I'd insisted that Fili go with his brother (after all, you barely saw one without the other). Since Balin had also opted to go in that boat, I'd decided to go with Bofur to not overcrowd them; an idea that Fili was not thrilled with. He seemed to think that our boat would capsize and I would end up drowning in the lake. Irrational worries but he'd stopped complaining once he saw I wasn't backing down and Thorin had sent a partial glare our way.

The rest of the boat-ride was spent in silence as the mountain got bigger and bigger. The silence was tense and I could tell that this was a big moment in the journey. This was the moment when we would _finally _reach Erebor; this was the point of the whole quest, to get here, and thinking of everything we'd gone through to get here, I thought it an absolute miracle that we'd actually made it here.

Once we'd got ashore and unloaded all of our supplies, the men from Lake-Town wasted no time climbing back in their boats and rowing back as quickly as humanly possible, or so it seemed.

"Come on." Said Thorin once we'd all shouldered some of the supplies. "We must waste no more time." Frowning at the almost frantic look in Thorin's eyes, I sighed and followed after him, walking next to Fili and Kili. The pace was quick and it wasn't long until we had reached a cliff that overlooked a city that looked all in ruins.

"What is this place?" breathed Bilbo voicing my thoughts as the dwarves stared at the city silently.

"It was once the city of Dale. Now it is a ruin. The desolation of Smaug." Replied Balin, quietly. Breathing deeply, I turned away from the ruined city. A dragon had done that, the exact same dragon which was actually in that mountain and we were going to wake it up. We were most definitely insane. And I was being extremely pessimistic lately, I realized.

"The sun will soon reach midday." Said Thorin, with no emotion on his face other than determination. "Let's find the hidden door into the mountain before it sets. This way!"

"Hang on a minute…" I said as the others started to walk away.

"Yes! Wait a second…" said Bilbo, standing next to me. "Is this the overlook? Gandalf said to meet him here. On no account were we…"

"Do you see him?" snapped Thorin, gesturing to the surroundings. "We have no time to wait upon the wizard. We're on our own. Come."

"This is not good." I muttered to Bilbo. "When has any luck come to us when Gandalf wasn't here?"

-8-

A/N: not a very long chapter, but I wanted to get this one out of the way, for Smaug is to come! Think of this as my present of the Christmas time of the year.

It's going to get a lot more pessimistic as the story continues; no good is going to come from Thorin's behaviour, and let's face it, Smaug isn't exactly a cooperative beast.

Reviews are always welcome! :)


	30. Chapter Thirty

Chapter Thirty

Rushing to catch up to the dwarves, who seemed like they were in a rush to reach the mountain, Bilbo and I exchanged worried glances. It was clear that Thorin wasn't going to be the voice of reason for the next few days due to him being so stressed about getting into Erebor.

Thankfully it wasn't a long trek to the base of the mountain, which seemed absolutely _huge_ now we were right at the base of it. The dwarves, while I was staring in awe as high as I could, were too busy hunting around for something to which I had no clue.

"Anything?" asked Thorin.

"Nothing!" shouted back Dwalin.

"If the map is true, the hidden door lies directly above us." Ah, so that's what they were searching for; the hidden door on the map from all the way back at Bilbo's house. God, that seemed like so long ago now, and I guess it _was._ It must have been months ago… Wondering how they were going to find a _hidden _door, I resolved to join in and search. I wasn't going to be of much use just standing around.

I scanned my eyes up and down the mountain with Bilbo. At this point in the journey, I wanted to stay with someone familiar and Fili seemed to be fine with his brother. Stopping at one particular place, I looked up to see a ginormous stone statue built into the mountain of who I assumed was an old dwarven ruler or something- I couldn't really see the face from all the way down on the ground. But that wasn't what caught my eye. Built into the side of the statue looked to be a set of stairs which led to what I hoped would be the hidden door (why else would they have built all of those steps?).  
"Psst. Bilbo." I whispered. "What about here?"

Nodding to me, Bilbo shouted to the others. "Up here!"

It didn't take long for all of the dwarves to gather where me and the Hobbit stood.

"You have keen eyes, Master Baggins." Praised Thorin, giving him a slight smile.

"Um, actually, it was Miss Amaya that found it." Bilbo replied, looking towards the ground.

"Ah, well…in that case, well done Amaya." said Thorin, directing his smile towards me before leading the way up the stairs.

"Oh, yeah, sure. I'm here to help." I mumbled, following after the others. "You lot seem awfully excited to enter a dragon's lair, but hey! Why not…?"

"Are you okay, Miss Amaya?" asked Ori, who was climbing just in front of me. "You seem to be talking to yourself."

"What? Oh yes! I'm fine. Perfectly fine. Completely fine!" I replied, giving the dwarf a grin which I'm sure looked like more of a grimace. Taking a deep breath, I looked up at the rest of the steps we had left to climb. We were already about half way up and looking up definitely seemed like a better option than looking down, even if it did make me feel tired just by seeing how many steps were left.

Dragging myself up, it seemed like hours before we finally reached where the steps ended and to my disdain, it looked like it was only me and Bilbo who were even affected by the climb up here. The others were already hunting around for the hidden door.

"This must be it." I heard Thorin say from a few metres away. "The hidden door." Making my way to where they'd all gathered, I furrowed my eyebrows. The part of the wall that Thorin had referred to looked no different to the rest of the mountain side and I couldn't figure out how they knew it was here. But I shrugged that off; it was a hidden _dwarven _door, and they were dwarves after all. It made sense that they'd know. "Let all those who doubted us rue this day!" he cheered, holding the key up so everyone could see. I grinned as the others started cheering.

"Right." Said Dwalin, as they calmed down. "We have our key, which means that somewhere, there is a keyhole." _They certainly are a smart bunch._

"The last light of Durin's Day will shine upon the keyhole." Said Thorin as he and Dwalin started to explore the walls with his fingers, obviously looking for the keyhole. I sat on a rock as the rest of the dwarves helped to try and find the keyhole, knowing I would be of absolutely no help.

"We're losing the light." Muttered Thorin a while later. This was true; in the distance the sun was beginning to set and the dwarves had resolved to just beating and kicking at the wall hoping it would move. It seemed their patience was wearing thin.

"Come on!" yelled Dwalin, who had opted to just blindly kick the wall in random places. Personally, I was surprised he hadn't broken his foot with how hard he was kicking.

"Be quiet!" snapped Nori, who was tapping the wall with a spoon while holding a cup to his ear. "I can't hear when you're thumping!"

"I can't find it…it's not here! It's not here!"

Exchanging a panicked look with Bilbo as Thorin gave an order to break the wall down, I sought out Fili, who was standing to the side with Kili with his head down. Giving in to the urge to walk over to him, I stood to his side and wrapped an arm around him, leaning my head against his shoulder silently.

"It's no good! The door's sealed." Said Balin, causing the others to stop. "It can't be opened by force. There's powerful magic on it."

"No!" shouted Thorin, staring into the distance at the sun, which had just disappeared behind some distant mountains. "The last light of Durin's Day will shine upon the keyhole." He whispered, staring at the key. "That's what it says. What did we miss?" I watched as he walked towards Balin. "What did we miss, Balin?"

Balin shook his head slowly. "We've lost the light. There's no more to be done. We had but one chance." I widened my eyes in disbelief as Fili moved causing me to release my grip around him. "Come away; it's…it's over."

"Wait, what?" I asked as they moved towards the steps to go back down.

"Wait a minute!" shouted Bilbo, running to stand next to me.

"You wait." Snapped Gloin.

"Where are they going? You can't give up now!"

I watched helplessly as Thorin took one glance at where the door was apparently hidden before he dropped the key to the ground.

"Thorin…" I said, as he turned around. "Thorin, come on. You can't give up now. You're so close. Don't…don't go." Instead of listening to me however, he merely shoved the map into Bilbo's chest and strode past him. "Fili! Stop!" Me pleas fell on deaf ears however, so I turned to Bilbo. "Bilbo, what do we do?"

Furrowing my eyebrows as Bilbo held up a hand, I watched as he read the map, muttering to himself. "Stand by the grey stone…when the thrush knocks…" he looked around standing by the wall. "The setting sun…and the last light of Durin's Day will shine. Hmm. The last light…last light…" I shuffled over to where Bilbo was standing and looked into the sky.

"Last light…" I echoed, watching as the clouds moved to reveal the moon in the sky. "Bilbo, last light. Last light!" I grinned. Looking down when hearing a tapping noise, I saw a thrush banging something against the wall. "This is it!"

"The last light!" agreed Bilbo, racing to the steps to yell to the dwarves. "The keyhole! Come back! Come back!" He shouted.

"Hey!" I joined in, louder than the Hobbit. "Come back! It's the light of the moon! The last light is the moonlight!"

"The last moon of autumn!" agreed Bilbo, turning to face me. "Where's the…where's the key? Where's the…it was here." He said, looking on the ground frantically. "But it was here, it was here! It was just…"

"Bilbo!" But it was too late, and I watched with horror as he accidentally kicked the key making it fly towards the edge of the cliff. I almost couldn't believe our luck when a boot stepped on the string attached to the key, only just stopping it from falling. "Thorin?"

I didn't get a reply, only a small smile from the dwarf as he picked up the key and walked slowly to the wall. Barely noticing the group of dwarves that had gathered around me, I watched as he inserted the key into the keyhole that had magically appeared and turned it. It was a strange sight seeing a door appear out of seemingly nowhere as Thorin pushed on the rock, but it was amazing nonetheless. We'd actually done it; we'd actually made it _into _the mountain!

"Erebor…" breathed Thorin.

"Thorin…" said Balin, tearing up and placing his hand on Thorin's shoulder.

"I know these walls…these walls, this stone." Said Thorin, walking inside the tunnel which the door led in to. "You remember it, Balin. Chambers filled with golden light."

Allowing all of the other dwarves to go in before me (it was _their_ home, after all), I smiled softly as I looked at all of their faces. Even the older dwarves had a soft look on their faces as they looked around, obviously thinking about where they actually _were._ Trying not to tear up, I couldn't help but think of my own home. I had barely thought about it for months, and truth be told, I didn't miss it per say, but seeing how happy the others were here, it brought back memories; memories that I pushed away to try and focus.

"I remember." Replied Balin, snapping me out of my thoughts.

"Herein lies the seventh kingdom of Durin's Folk." Said Gloin, reading some runes atop the door that were very like the ones on the ring Fili had given me. "May the heart of the mountain unite all dwarves in defense of this home."

"The throne of the king." Said Balin to Bilbo as he stared at the carving above the door.

"Oh. And what's that above it?"

"The Arkenstone."

"Arkenstone…and what's that?"

"That, Master Burglar, is why you are here." Said Thorin, the strange gleam back in his eye.

-8-

I left the dwarves to their celebrations for getting into the mountain by sitting on a rock outside. Bilbo was being shown and told all about Erebor by Bofur who, as always, was being very talkative.

"Amaya?"

"Hi Fili." I replied, not bothering to turn around.

"Why are you out here?" he asked, sitting down next to me.

"Oh, I was just…admiring the view. I don't know, I guess it seemed like a private moment between you all. I wanted to give you some space."

"Some space?" he asked, finding my hand and holding it. "Amaya, you have as much right to be here as any of us do. If it wasn't for you and Bilbo, we wouldn't have even found the keyhole. Plus, this is going to be your home as much as ours, I hope." I nodded. "I shouldn't have left you up here." He whispered, rubbing his thumb over the top of my hand. "I'm sorry."

"It's fine. I know how much this meant to all of you; thinking that the whole journey was for nothing, it's enough to dishearten anyone." I smiled. "Come on. It's getting cold out here."

Letting Fili drag me up and lead me back into the tunnel, I managed to overhear the end of a conversation between the dwarves and Bilbo, who looked very uncomfortable.

"Are we really going to let the Hobbit go down there alone?" asked Bofur, casting me and Fili a glance as we entered the tunnel.

"Wait a minute." I interrupted. "You are all going to let Bilbo go and confront a _dragon_, all on his own? Are you all insane?"

"Lass…" began Balin.

"Miss Osbourne, if you don't recall, this is what Master Baggins has been accompanying us for." Said Thorin, narrowing his eyes. "If you do not like this, you are free to accompany him." _Oh, so I'm 'Miss Osbourne' again, am I?_

"Thorin, you can't really think that Amaya will…" started Fili.

"Fine." I said, looking Thorin in the eye.

"Amaya. Amaya, you can't actually be serious…"

"I'll go with Bilbo. It's obvious none of you are going to." I said, looking at the company and then at Bilbo, who I could tell was slightly relieved.

"Amaya, no." said Fili, spinning my around and looking me in the eye. "This is madness. You can't go with him, I won't let you!"

"You won't _let _me?" I echoed. "You can't stop me, Fili. I can do what I want, you don't own me. Besides, I'll be perfectly fine."

"Amaya, that's a _dragon _down there, okay? A _dragon_!"

"Yes…I'm aware of that, and standing here is not going to change that fact. Listen, I'm not just going to stand there while Bilbo goes down there by himself. But I promise you, I will be back here next to you in no time. Here." I took off the ring he gave me and put it in his hand. "I will be back to come and get this. Think of it as my promise."

"But…" He looked down at the ring in his hand. "Okay…"

"Thanks! Love you!" Giving him a lingering kiss (I'm pretty sure the others got quite uncomfortable), I smiled before moving over to where Bilbo and Balin were stood. "We'll be back soon."

Walking beside Balin as we moved further and further into the mountain was actually very unnerving. Despite how confident I felt when talking to Fili and Thorin, I could honestly say I was scared shitless, but I kept the feelings bottled up on the inside. There was no use in scaring Bilbo. No more than he already was anyway.

"So, you want us to find a jewel?" asked Bilbo, breaking the silence.

"A large white jewel, yes." Replied Balin, nodding.

"A white jewel?" I asked. "Is that all we get, because there's probably quite a few of those down there."

Balin chuckled. "There is only _one_ Arkenstone. You'll know it when you see it."

"Alright." Said Bilbo, giving me an uneasy look to which I mirrored.

"In truth…" said Balin, stopping mid-step. "…I do not know what you will find down there. You needn't go if you don't want to, there's no dishonor in turning back, despite all you said back there, lass."

"No, Balin." Said Bilbo, shaking his head. "I promised I would do this, and I think I must try."

"Yeah, Bilbo's right." I agreed. "This is the right thing to do. We'll be fine."

"It never ceases to amaze me." Said Balin, chuckling.

"What?"

"The courage of Hobbits. And Humans for that matter. Go now with as much luck as you can muster. Oh, and…if there is, in fact, a live dragon down there, don't waken it." Gulping, I gave Balin what I hoped was a reassuring look, grabbed a hold of Bilbo's hand, and made our way into the treasure chamber.

-8-

A/N: wow! Chapter thirty! I almost can't believe it! I would also like to say a HUGE thank you to everyone who has reviewed, favourited and followed this story, you are all absolutely amazing and I hope you are all having a great holiday season and had a super Christmas!

In response to **sassygirl9811**'s review: you'll have to wait and see! I already have what's going to happen in my head and I am revealing nothing! Haha! You'll have to wait and see!


	31. Chapter Thirty-One

Chapter Thirty-One

Keeping a tight hold of Bilbo's hand, it wasn't that far into what I was now referring to as Smaug's lair. To my benefit, I'd actually found that singing to myself helped calm my nerves.

"Light 'em up, up, up, light 'em up, up, up, I'm on fire…!" I sang quietly.

"Miss Amaya?" I heard Bilbo interrupted. "I'm sorry, but I really don't think that that song is…helping."

"Oh, yeah, sorry." I apologized. "Completely wrong song to sing. And wrong time. Yeah…" I remained silent for the rest of the way, which went by far too quickly, pausing for a second when we finally reached the entrance to the 'lair'.

"Hello?" asked Bilbo, peering into the room and knocking quietly on the wall beside him. Wincing as the sound echoed throughout the room, I smothered a chuckle as Bilbo jumped and pressed himself against the wall.

Looking away from Bilbo and gazing properly into the room, my eyes widened. The chamber was absolutely _filled _with all different kinds of treasure (though mostly gold, I noticed); gems, jewels, golden coins, swords and other weapons, bowls, mirrors…it all seemed too much to be true.

"You're not at home…" muttered Bilbo. "Not at home. Good. Good, good, good."

"Bilbo…" I whispered. "_That _is really not helping." Twitching his nose, Bilbo nodded and I followed him down the steps and onto the seemingly never-ending pile of treasure. I winced as the treasure slid under our feet, causing the resulting noises to echo around the room. "Okay, so Arkenstone…Arkenstone…" I mumbled, rooting through random parts of the pile. "This is mad, 'a large white jewel'. As if there is a shortage of them in here."

"What's that?" asked Bilbo, picking up a jewel and shaking it.

"I don't think that's it." I said, walking in the opposite direction to him. "Balin said we'll know it when we see it. Whatever that means…"

Nodding, Bilbo threw the jewel aside, causing us both to jump when it clattered to the ground and rolled down a slope.

"Sushh!" hissed Bilbo, looking around for any sign of the dragon. "Arkenstone…Arkenstone…a large, white jewel…very helpful." I chuckled. At least I wasn't the only one a little annoyed at the few not-very-helpful descriptions of what we were trying to find.

I continued to search through the treasure for what seemed like hours. I had absolutely no idea how deep the piles of treasure went, and it looked like it went on for miles.

"Bilbo, we're going to be here for days, I don't think…" My sentence fell short as I heard a pile of coins slide over each other. I gulped as I saw Bilbo a few metres away from where the coins had moved, and my eyes widened as I saw a huge eye open where the coins had moved away.

Trying to move as quietly as possible behind a stone pillar, I distantly saw Bilbo do the same. Eyes still roaming for the Arkenstone, I tried to quieten my breathing as I heard more and more movement. Obviously the dragon _was _home and me and Bilbo were seconds away from being its dinner. Peering over at Bilbo again, my eyes widened even further (something I didn't think was possible) when I saw him completely vanish just like I'd seen in the dungeons at Mirkwood. Whether he'd actually left or was merely invisible now I didn't really care. I didn't have the ability to do either of those things, and as I peered around the pillar, I saw a huge, definitely _real _dragon raising its head and starting to sniff if the sounds were anything to go by. It wouldn't be able to see Bilbo, but it would _definitely _be able to see me.

"Well, thieves, I smell you. I hear your breath. I feel your air. Where are you?" _It's got quite a nice voice…for a dragon,_ I thought.

"Oh my God, oh my God, oh my God…" I mouthed, careful to make as little noise as possible. Unfortunately, I was unable to stop breathing due to the fact that I needed to do that to…well, _live_. Tiptoeing around the pillar, I saw coins being moved every here and there, stopping just in front of where I was standing. Was that Bilbo? Was he _actually _invisible?

"Come now…" growled Smaug, his voice getting closer and closer. "Don't be shy. Step into the light. Mmm, there is something about one of you, something you carry. Something made of gold, but far more…_precious…"_ I shrieked as Smaug's head appeared right in front of me, and now Bilbo, who had magically appeared out of nowhere at the side of me. He was bent over, almost as if he was in pain. "There you are, thieves in the shadows."

"What do we do? How the hell do you sweet-talk a dragon? Oh my god, we're gonna get eaten…" I murmured to Bilbo, backing away incredibly slowly.

"I…" Bilbo cleared his throat. "We did not come to steal from you, O Smaug the Unassessably Wealthy. We merely wanted to gaze upon your magnificence, to see if you really were as great as the old tales say. We did not believe them."

"That's good, keep going." I said as the dragon moved backwards, drawing himself up so that we could see his entire body. Smaug was, in a single word, huge. How we were ever going to get away, let alone defeat him was beyond me. I was also very impressed at how Bilbo was handling things where I was being completely useless. _Time to buck your ideas up, Amaya._

"And do you now?" he asked, stretching out his wings.

"Truly." Said Bilbo. "The tales and songs fall utterly short of your enormity, O Smaug the Stupendous."

"Do you think flattery will keep you alive?"

"N…no, no." Bilbo and I shook our heads.

"No indeed. You seem familiar with my name, but I don't remember smelling your kind before." I felt sorry for Bilbo; it seemed Smaug was focusing most of his attention on him and while that made me feel happier, it didn't make Bilbo feel any better. "Who are you, and where do you come from, may I ask?"

"I…I come from under the hill." Stuttered Bilbo, looking to the side. Following his gaze, my mouth dropped open. It seemed we had found the Arkenstone. It was lying to the side of us, several metres away and I knew immediately what Balin had meant by we'd know it when we saw it. It seemed to shine with an unnatural light, shining every colour known to mankind and it took all of my strength to tear my gaze away.

"Underhill?" asked Smaug.

"And under hills and over hills my path has led. And…and…through the air. I am he who walks unseen."

"Impressive. What else do you claim to be?"

I could see Bilbo swallow thickly as he moved towards the Arkenstone. Smaug's head was literally inches from him and I couldn't imagine what a dragon's breath smelt like. Not pleasant, I'd imagine. "I am…luck wearer. Riddle maker…"

"Lovely titles; go on." Backing away from the dragon and Bilbo slowly, I tried to make my way back to the door.

"Barrel rider."

"Barrels? Now _that _is interesting. And what about your little dwarf friends? Where are they hiding?"

"Dw…dwarves?" stuttered Bilbo. "No, no, no dwarves here. You've got that all wrong."

"Oh, I don't think so, barrel rider. Your little female friend here is _covered_ with the scent of dwarves. If I didn't know any better, I'd say she was one herself." My breath caught in my throat as the dragon turned to face me. Was that meant as an insult? "But no…they sent you in here to do their dirty work while they skulk about outside."

"N…no…" I said, wincing at my stuttering, though trying to take a leaf out of Bilbo's book. "You must be…you must be mistaken, O Smaug…Chiefest and Greatest of calamities…" _That's it, that's my compliments done. I hope Bilbo has some more. _

"You have nice manners… for a couple of thieves and liars! I know the smell and taste of dwarf. No one better. It is the gold! They are drawn to treasure like flies to dead flesh." I leapt out of the way as the dragon surged forward, his tail thrashing around near where Bilbo was. "Did you think I did not know this day would come, when a pack of canting dwarves would come crawling back to the mountain?"

"No!" I shouted as Bilbo fell down a pile of gold, trying to run after the Arkenstone which had been thrown away from the impact of Smaug's tail. Smaug, who had heard Bilbo's commotion, decided that Bilbo made a much better target and swung around, causing his tail to swing my way and knock me half way across the room and crash into a pillar as Smaug knocked one down in his haste to get to Bilbo.

"The King under the mountain is dead!" roared Smaug. "I took his throne! I ate his people like a wolf among sheep." Trying to shake off the black spots that started to fill my vision from the knock to the head I'd suffered from hitting the pillar, I pulled myself up onto my feet and tried to run for the door, all the while trying to find Bilbo. "I kill where I wish, when I wish. My armor is iron. No blade can pierce me!" Having to duck to avoid the dragon who was now circling up above, I managed to catch a glimpse of Bilbo, who was hiding under a large stone structure. "It's Oakenshield. That filthy Dwarvish usurper! He sent you in here for the Arkenstone, didn't he?"

Shocked at how accurate the dragon was being, I looked up. Smaug was now circling where Bilbo was hiding, basically giving me a clear run to the exit. But I couldn't just leave Bilbo in here, and anyhow, Smaug might see me and eat me in one mouthful. And I felt far too dizzy to run anywhere.

"No, no, no." said Bilbo, making eye contact with me and gesturing me towards the steps. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"Don't bother denying it. I guessed his foul purpose some time ago. But it matters not. Oakenshield's quest will fail. The darkness is coming, it will spread to every corner of the land." Shivering at his words, I hid behind a pillar again, nearer the steps. Smaug's words were ringing too true in my ears. "You have both been _used_, thieves in the shadows. You were only ever a means to an end. The coward Oakenshield has weighed the value of your lives and found them worth _nothing_."

"No!" I yelled before I could stop myself. "No! You're lying!" I refused to believe those words. Thorin valued me and Bilbo, I know he did. But the thought of how easily he let me and Bilbo come down here (well, it was more _force _Bilbo than anything) came into my mind. And the strange gleam in his eyes…could Smaug be right?

"What did he promise you?" asked Smaug, snapping me out of my thoughts. "A share of the treasure? As if it was his to give. I will not part with a single coin. Not _one_ piece of it." I winced as Smaug whipped his tail at Bilbo, sending him flying into a pillar nearer me. "My teeth are swords! My claws are spears! My wings are a hurricane!"

"So it is true…" I heard Bilbo murmur. "The black arrow found its mark."

I gave him a confused look. What the hell was he talking about? "What did you say?" growled Smaug.

"Uh, uh, I was just saying your reputation precedes you, oh Smaug the Tyrannical. Truly, you have no equal on this earth."

"I am almost tempted to let you take it." I looked to see Bilbo staring at the Arkenstone, which was lying only a few feet away. "If only to see Oakenshield suffer, watch it destroy him, watch it corrupt his heart and drive him mad." I edged backwards towards the steps, trying not to fall over, as Bilbo and Smaug faced each other. "But I think not. I think our little game ends here. So tell me, thieves, how do you choose to die?"

I gasped as Smaug lunged forward, stopping as Bilbo mysteriously vanished again. Not bothering to focus on that anymore, I raced forward, feet slipping on the golden coins as I made it to and up the stairs just as Smaug let out a huge gust of flames.

"Bilbo?!" I asked, careful to keep my voice down. "Please, please don't be dead. Please don't be dead…where are you?"

"Miss Amaya." I heard as Bilbo appeared in front of me.  
"My God Bilbo! I thought you were dead. You have got to tell me how you disappear like that! Are you okay?"

"Yes, yes, yes." Replied Bilbo in a hurry. "But we need to leave. Now."

Nodding, I grabbed his hand and hurried over to where the beginning of the tunnel was, not expecting to run into something quite hard and bring back the throbbing in my head which I'd momentarily forgotten.

"Amaya! Thank Durin…" Relaxing when I recognised Fili as he hugged me, I also heard Thorin speak.

"You're alive!"

"Not for much longer." Replied Bilbo.

"Did you find the Arkenstone?" I exchanged a worried look with Bilbo as the dragons words came back to us. He said that the jewel would drive Thorin mad, and right now, I could easily believe that. The look that overcame Thorin's face every time the stone was mentioned was beginning to scare me a little.

"The dragon's coming, Thorin!" I said, moving forward only to get pulled back when I realised Fili had an iron grip on my hand.

"The Arkenstone!" Thorin yelled, blocking the exit. "Did you find it?"

"No. Thorin, we have to leave, now! Do you _have _a death wish?" I replied, going with Bilbo to take a step forward towards him. I didn't expect what came next. As Bilbo and I moved forward, Thorin swung his sword across the exit and pressed the blade against Bilbo causing the Hobbit to stumble back.

"Uncle!" shouted Fili, dragging me backwards. "Stop!" I was about to intervene (doing what, I had no idea) when Smaug flew up to where we were, a mighty rumble sounding in his chest when he caught sight of Thorin.

"You will burn!"

"Okay, now we really need to go!" I yelled, pushing the others into the tunnel and toward the company as Smaug roared jets of fire at our backs. The way back was certainly quicker than the way there. By the time we'd reached the rest of the company, I was nursing a very bad stitch and I had begun to feel the throbbing in my head _again_ as the others ran towards us with questions.

"What happened?"

"What's going on?"

"Is the dragon awake?"

"We need to shut the door." Said Bilbo, quickly.

"But what if it won't open again?" asked Ori.

"Don't fully close it then." I said, rubbing the back of my head. "But we can't leave it open! Come on."

They finally took my advice, and just in time to as I heard the dragon smash open the front door into the mountain and fly outside, hitting the side of the mountain with an almighty crash. "You think you could deceive me, barrel rider?" the dragon roared. "You have come from Lake-Town. There is…is some sort of scheme hatched between these filthy dwarves and those miserable cup-trading Lakemen. Those sniveling cowards with their longbows and black arrows! Perhaps it is time I paid them a visit."

"Oh my god…" I mumbled, leaning against the wall.

"You can watch them all _die._"

"No…" whispered Bilbo, staring helplessly at the door. "What have we done?"

I squeezed my eyes shut as we all remained silent. We had just condemned all of those people to death. "This is our fault…" I said, quietly.

"Our fault?" asked Kili, looking up from the stone he'd been kicking with his foot. "How is it our fault?"

"_We _went down there. _We _woke him up. He knew Lake-Town helped us and now he's going to burn the entire town! Not to mention he knew Lake-Town helped us! He's going to make sure that he burns _everything_. And let's not forget _your _behaviour down there!" I pointed my finger at Thorin. "What the hell was that about?"

"I do not know what you're talking about." Thorin replied with a blank expression, not looking me in the eye.

"You wouldn't let us out! All you cared about was that damned Arkenstone. Me and Bilbo could have burned down there and it didn't seem like you even cared. Even Fili, your own nephew, was there and you didn't seem like you cared! Not that I'm bothered." I shrugged. "I'll just sit here and let you do whatever the hell you want. At this moment, I really couldn't care less."

-8-

A/N: And voila! Desolation of Smaug is done! Next, it is the Battle of the Five Armies, and this is where things are really going to go down hill. I am unsure whether to wait until the film is out, or combine the book with the parts of the film that I want to include, so let me know what you think on that!

To me, this chapter is a no-go, but obviously it is a major part of the plot, so oh well…but let me know what you think! Drop a review!


	32. Chapter Thirty-Two

Chapter Thirty-Two

It was another few minutes until the dwarves dared to open the door again. I had opted to continue sitting against the wall willing my headache to go away to no avail. We had awoken a _dragon _after all, which was currently on its way to kill hundreds, maybe even thousands, of people. And it was _our _fault. I mean, sure, the Master and everyone else who was at the feast knew of the dangers, Bard had argued his case and explained it all to them and they'd agreed to help us anyway. But everyone else, the rest of the entire town, they had no idea, they had had no say in anything.

Taking a deep breath, and cursing as my headache got _worse _instead of better, I stood up and shuffled around the door to where the others were standing. The view I saw, the view that I once thought was amazing when we'd arrived, now brought tears to my eyes. In the distance, I could see the beginning of flames erupting from Lake-Town, standing out in the dark. I hadn't realised that it was still night time; the amount of time that I was down in the treasure room, I'd just assumed it was the next morning. Smaug was barely seen above the town, but the never ending flames being unleashed on the town gave no doubt that he was definitely there.

"Oh my god…" I mumbled, still rubbing my forehead. Tearing my eyes away from the scene in front of me, I turned to see the rest of the dwarves in a similar position to me; standing on the edge of the cliff staring at the town. All except, I noticed, Thorin, who didn't seem to be present. Rolling my eyes, I walked backwards towards the wall and leant against it. Where were we going to go from here? Because once Smaug was finished with Lake-Town, he was going to come back here and kill us all then. There was literally no way out of this.

"Amaya." Focusing my eyes forward, I saw Fili standing there. Not saying anything, I gave him a small nod. "You forgot to ask for this back." Furrowing my eyebrows, I looked down at his outstretched hand to see the ring he'd given me lying in his palm.

"Sorry, I was a little preoccupied." I replied, taking the ring and putting it back on, smiling slightly when I realised that I'd actually missed it despite the short time I'd had it.

"Yes…Amaya?" Raising an eyebrow at Fili's questioning tone, I gave him a look to continue. "Did you really mean what you said earlier? About not caring?"

I paused. Had I meant what I said? I'd been mad at Thorin for not letting us leave, for almost getting us burned alive, but did I really not care about the outcome of this whole journey anymore? Was that really what I meant when I said that? But then, when I thought about Thorin's behaviour, I got angry all over again.

"I…I don't know. I…it was a spur of the moment thing when I said it. But, I think in some small way, yes…I did mean it…"

"Why?" I swallowed hard at the painful look on Fili's face after I'd finished speaking. "You don't care about how we're finally reclaiming our homeland? Now that we're finally here? I thought you understood!"

Resisting to jump at the raised volume of Fili's voice, and now highly aware that the others were now listening in, I raised my head, trying to pick my next words carefully. An argument was _not _what I wanted at this moment in time, and it was definitely not making me feel any better. "I do understand, Fili, I understand how it is to want to have a home. And…I understand how important this is to all of you." I looked around to see most of the others looking our way. "But…things have changed since we set off all those months ago. I feel like I've changed, and I have no idea whether it's for the better. And now…a dragon that we have woken has flown off and is not killing hundreds of people and there is nothing we can do about it but stand and watch! _I_ can't just sit here and feel useless. This is _our _fault and where even is Thorin?"

"Lass, he's just…" started Balin.

"Please don't try and defend him, Balin. He's changed and I _know _you all see it too, even if you don't want to admit it." I took a deep breath. "Listen, I am really sorry to be the one saying all of this, _really. _But I can't forget the look he had down in that treasure room. It _scared_ me. And I just…this is just the way I feel, I'm sorry."

"Amaya…" Looking towards Fili, I was thankful that the partially angry look on his face had gone and his voice had lowered.

"Fili, listen. I've come this far, I'm not going to turn back now. Besides, where am I supposed to go? The only home I have is here. I'm not going to leave you." I smiled softly at the small grin that overcame Fili's face, glad that this conversation was partially distracting me from what was going on in the distance. As if I could forget. "And according to Smaug, I smell enough like a dwarf to live here anyway."

"Oh really?"

"Uh huh." I nodded. "You know, my friends at home would never believe I spoke to an _actual _dragon."

"You spoke to Smaug?" Fili's expression was now one of shock. I didn't blame him if I'm honest.

"Well, kind of…it was more of, he spoke, Bilbo replied, and we ran around avoiding his tail. Something that I'm not too good at, apparently." I replied, rubbing my head again. "Turns out hitting a pillar hurts for quite a while." I said, trying to lighten the mood and failing dismally.

"You hit a pillar?" demanded Fili, his hands coming up to cup my face. "Amaya! You should have told me! What if it's serious?"

"Fili, it's fine. It's only a headache…"

"And bleeding. Amaya, the back of your head has been bleeding."

"From a cut, Fili. That'll be all." I grabbed his hands and took them off my face. "I'm fine. Okay? A lot better than a lot of people right now." And thus, the mood was back to dark and depressing.

"Amaya, what has brought this mood on?" asked Fili, suddenly.

"What?" I frowned.

"Ever since we've got here, you've been withdrawn and…depressed for want of a better word. And then you volunteer what can only be described as a suicide mission by going to Bilbo to see Smaug. Why? Let me in, Amaya. I can't help if you don't speak to me."

"Fili, I have no idea what you're talking about. I'm just…tired. And now is really not the time for this conversation."

"Amaya…"

"Just drop it, Fili, please." Shrugging him off, and not seeing the hurt look on his face as I walked away, I journeyed to the edge of the cliff again, still well aware that Thorin was not here.

Looking into the distance, the flames of Lake-Town seemed even bigger than they did previously. I didn't actually know how long I'd been talking to the others- it couldn't have been long, could it?- but looking now, I couldn't see any sign of the dragon. I didn't know whether this was because he was lost in the dark, he'd disappeared god knows where (although that was _highly _unlikely) or, the option I was most terrified of, he had burned the entire town and had circled back to finish all of us off. And I knew we wouldn't stand a chance if he did. He knew where we were hiding, so we couldn't get out of there. So our options would be to either stay out here and get eaten, or probably starve to death in the tunnel. Not particularly nice options, and now I had pushed Fili away. Great…

Looking away from the cliff (_again_), I immediately sought out Bilbo who was also staring at the town in horror, his face perfectly mirroring my mood.

"'Sup, Bilbo." I said, walking over to him. "How are you faring after that whole…dragon thing. You looked like you hit your head pretty hard."

"No, I'm…I'm okay…" he paused. "I…I want to say, I know what you meant earlier…about how we awoke the dragon. When I ran out of my Hobbit hole all those months ago, I never thought I would be seeing…this." He gestured to the scene in front of us. "I'm not the same Hobbit I was, and I think there is still a lot to come. And not all of it good either." He furrowed his eyebrows in thought. "May I say something?"

Furrowing my own eyebrows, I nodded. "Yeah, anything."

"Whatever happened with Fili earlier…don't stay mad at him."

"I'm not mad at him, Bilbo."

"Well, I'd tell him that. He looked pretty upset when you left him." And with that, Bilbo walked away to sit by himself. Damn, when did the Hobbit get so wise?

-8-

It was a few minutes later when I eventually went to talk to Fili again. It seemed that most of the others had opted to remain silent, not really knowing what to do, so I aimed to keep my voice down.

"Fili?" He looked up from the patch of dirt he'd been scuffing with his boot. "Hey." I smiled, awkwardly.

"Hi." He replied.

"Urm…I just…Bilbo said you looked a bit…upset I guess…when I left you earlier." Geez Amaya, stop sounding so awkward. It's only Fili. _Fili_, the one person you can talk about anything with. "I'm sorry, about what I said; being so blunt with you. It's just…this place. This whole thing. It's a little overwhelming." Yeah, as if I'm going to let him in on my _actual _fears and worries. It didn't go down well earlier, I wasn't about to repeat that again.

"What? No, I wasn't…upset. I was just…"

"It's okay. But if I want to speak to you, I will, okay?" I smiled, moving to hug him. "Okay," I cleared my throat. "Sappy moment over. What's going to happen now?"

"I don't know, Amaya. But whatever happens, we'll be okay." For some strange reason, as I glanced into the distance, I found that I highly doubted what Fili had said.

-8-

A/N: okay, very small chapter but it is mainly a filler. This will also probably be the last update for a long while due to the reason that I will have a _huge _load of college work to do and because I'm going to wait until the battle of the five armies is out. I've seen the film and know where this story is going to go, but I need to wait until the film is out to continue.

I want to say a _huge _thank you to everyone who has reviewed, followed and favourited! You keep me wanting to continue this story! And I will say, there is some drama to come! I have another story that is on my profile that _will _be getting updated, so if you're stuck for something to read, check that out!

Hopefully see you all when I update! And happy New Year!


	33. Chapter Thirty-Three

Chapter Thirty-Three

There wasn't much that any of us could do but sit around and wait. It seemed all we did up here was sit and wait. I still had no idea where Thorin had wandered off to (although I had a pretty good guess), so I was left with nothing much to do. It had been about an hour since my little rant; an hour in which I'd sat on my own staring into the distance blankly. The others had opted to sit in little circles, and I had no doubt that they were finally rejoicing in reclaiming their homeland (well, the dragon hadn't been seen for a couple of hours, I guess it was easy for them to think this, or _want _to think this at least. I was waiting for confirmation that Smaug was actually dead before celebrating).

Deciding that enough was enough, and finally tired of my own depressing thoughts, I stood up in search of Fili. I didn't have to search long. I found him around the corner of the cliff which we were still stood on alone. This surprised me. I'd expected him to be with Kili at least, but then I remembered seeing Kili sitting and talking with Bofur, Ori, Nori and Dori. It hadn't even occurred to me that Fili was missing from that little circle while I was lost in my own thoughts.

Sitting down silently next to him, I twirled my ring around before reaching out to twist the braid I'd put in his hair around my finger. "You shouldn't ever let me braid your hair."

His eyes widened. "Why not?"

"It's all coming out. Yours puts mine to shame. Why, what did you think I meant? Why do you look so shocked?" I paused for a second before it dawned on me. "Oh God, no! I didn't mean that I didn't _want _to braid your hair again. I mean…I know what it means to and everything. I just mean that I don't do the braids justice." I watched as his face relaxed.

Fili looked down at his braid I'd given him. Honestly, I was surprised it had lasted _this _long with everything that had happened. It felt like _ages _ago since we were back in Rivendell. "Here." He reached up to undo his braid. "You can redo it."

Glad that things were getting back to normal(ish), I ran my fingers through the section of his hair I was re-braiding and gave him a sheepish grin. "You'll have to talk me on how to do it again. I want it to be better than last time. I have no clue on how to get the bead on at the end."

Fili chuckled as he began to explain how to do it. By the end, I was definitely proud of myself. I'd done it quicker than last time (it only took me thirty minutes to do it properly this time!) and it definitely looked better. "Well that definitely looks ten times better." I murmured, running my fingers through the rest of this hair absentmindedly. How his hair looked this good when mine probably looked like a birds nest was beyond me. Must be a Dwarven thing.

"It looks perfect." Replied Fili, gazing at me as I avoided his eyes. "I'm so glad I met you."

I smiled awkwardly. "Well…that's a relief! And here's me thinking that you were getting sick of me."

I swallowed thickly as he looked me in the eyes. "Never." He paused for a minute. "I know you said you would talk when you're ready, and I respect that, but it's…it worries me when you keep things to yourself. I get the feeling that you're not happy. With me."

My eyes widened. "What? No! No! God, Fili don't _ever _think that. _Ever._" I said firmly, taking his hands in mine. "Where did you get that idea?" Had I done something to give him that idea? "It's just…I guess I'm scared. About this whole thing. About the dragon. About Thorin. About what's going to happen after all of this is over. If we'll even be there to see when this is all over."

"What do you mean 'after all this is over'?"

"Well, I don't know. I just feel like…I'll be there. I'll be there, not having much use. I mean, all of your families and friends are going to come over here and you're going to be restoring everything in the mountain and I'm just going to be there like a spare wheel. And before you ask, I have no idea where all this is coming from. I've just been really emotional and…worried lately is all."

"Well, I can tell you this much." Said Fili. "You're not going to be there like a 'spare wheel' as you put it. You're my One. You're going to be the future Queen of Erebor, after all." He grinned. "You'll be one of the most important people in there. Not to mention that you helped reclaim our homeland. That's more than enough to have a proper place among us. Everyone-our families and friends- will love you. My mother definitely will. I can tell."

I'm a little ashamed to admit that I blanked out a little when Fili was talking. What he said hadn't really occurred to me in the slightest. "Q…queen?" I stuttered.

"Yes." Fili looked confused. "Why do you look so worried?"

"Well, I…I hadn't realised that I would be…that."

"You hadn't?" I shook my head. "Well since I'm the oldest, I'll take the throne after Thorin. As my One, you'll be queen."

"Fili." I breathed. "I don't know anything about being queen! What the hell am I supposed to do?"

"You won't be alone. I'll be there every step of the way to help you. You shouldn't be worried."

"It's easy for you to say when you've probably grown up being…taught how to rule and everything."

"That is true. But you still shouldn't worry. I'll still help you." He leant his forehead against mine. "And remember what I said. We'll be okay. We'll see the end of this."

"Yeah…so what are you doing over here by yourself?"

"Just thinking. What you said earlier hit a little closer to home, if I'm being honest. Thorin is not acting normally. I know gold sickness runs in our family, but I never thought that…he always seemed so strong. It's hard to see him like he is now."

"Hey…" I said, wrapping my arms around him to pull him into a hug. "Thorin is going to be fine. Call it intuition." He opened his mouth to interrupt when I put a finger on his lips. "And before you say anything, I need you to know that it is _not _going to happen to you, even if it does run in your family. You are too strong to let something like that overcome you, and even if it does, I will be with you every step of the way."

I smiled as Fili returned the hug. "How do you always know what I'm thinking?"

"I don't." I replied. "But I'm good at guessing. You're pretty easy to read."

"Oh really?" he raised an eyebrow.

"Yep."

"So, what am I thinking right now?" he smirked.

"I don't know." I replied.

"I'm thinking…" he leaned in close. "…that I want to kiss you now." Giggling at the shy look that overcame his face (which I found very endearing), I closed the gap between us and pressed my lips to his. It was a welcome relief to do something that made me forget all about the tenseness and the worry that I'd felt the past few days. And let's face it, I would never pass up an opportunity to kiss Fili.

I giggled as his hands ran up my sides causing me to squirm as he pulled me closer. "You are so beautiful." He murmured as he pulled away. Scoffing (because that statement was absolutely _ridiculous_. I hadn't washed in days, my hair was a tatty mess and I'm pretty sure my breath stank), I shook my head.

"You're speaking nonsense."

"No, I mean it. You said when I met you that you trained to analyse people's behaviour. So look at me, is there any sign that tells you I'm lying?" Looking at him for a minute or two, I shook my head.

"How the hell do you remember every little thing I tell you?"

"I listen."

"Are you insinuating that I don't listen to you?" I scoffed mockingly.

"Of course not!" he replied in the same tone. "I'm just saying that what you say is important to me. I want to know everything about you, and I can't do that if I forget things."

"I honestly don't deserve you." I whispered, wrapping my arm around his side and staring off into the distance.

-8-

Fili and I didn't return to where all of the others were sitting that night. The night itself was dragging and Fili and I were far too comfy to move. I found myself wishing for nothing more than some proper privacy like we had in Lake-Town. To be honest, if I had it my way, I'd have said to Fili that we just needed to be quiet and we could have done it right there and then. However, I knew what Fili would say: he probably wouldn't mind the being quiet thing, but he would say that I deserved more than just what I would describe as a 'quickie' on the mountain floor.

So I accepted just to rest my head on his chest and try to get some sleep. Sleep, however, refused to come to me, so I slowly lifted my head up and tiptoed over to where all of the others were. Most of them, I saw, were asleep (although Thorin _still_ wasn't there); all except Bofur who was obviously keeping watch.

"Not sleeping?" he asked, looking up at me from where he sat.

"Can't." I replied, sitting down next to him. "How anyone can sleep after everything that's happened today is beyond me."

"Mmmm." Agreed Bofur, smoking on his pipe. "You shouldn't feel put out, you know." he said after a few moments of silence.

"What?" His statement surprised me.

"About what you said earlier. We all understand. You had more than enough right to say those things in my opinion. You were only saying how you felt." I gave him a skeptical look. I was tired and it was not doing my mood any good, although I tried not to take it out on Bofur. All he was trying to do was make me feel better after all.

"Yeah…I know. I just…it's hard to believe all of this is actually happening and I can't help the feeling that everything is going to get much worse." Bofur frowned as he blew out a breath of smoke. "Fili said I would be queen. When all of this is over and he takes the throne after Thorin." Bofur gave me a soft smile and nodded. "I can't be…I couldn't be a queen. Not me."

"Why not?" It shocked me to see that he looked genuinely confused.

"Why not? Isn't that obvious? I have absolutely _no _idea where I would even begin. I'm just…not cut out to be any sort of royalty. Like, at all. I'm nothing, I'm…"

"Do you love Fili? Do you want to be with him?" asked Bofur, cutting me off.

"What kind of questions are they?" I replied, furrowing my eyebrows. "Of course I do. I always will."

"Then it is just something you're gonna have to get over, lass." He said, quietly. "I understand that it must be a little overwhelming, but I'm sure Fili has said that he'll help you. And you've got to trust that he will. If you want to be with Fili, this is just something that comes with it."

I sighed and rubbed my eyes. "Yeah. Yeah, I know. I'm gonna, uh…I'm gonna try and get some sleep." I said, standing up. "Night."

"Night, lass."

Not sure whether my talk with Bofur had made me feel better or not, I made my way back over to Fili and lay down next to him again. Trying to focus on how his arms wrapped around my waist as he pulled me to him, I eventually gave in to an uneasy sleep.

-8-

A/N: okay, so I know I said that I wouldn't be doing another update until the last film comes out, but I couldn't resist in doing just one more chapter to tide everyone over until then! This is definitely just another filler, but sometimes those are the best ones, right?!

I just want to say a _huge, gigantic_ thank you to everyone that has reviewed, followed and favourited this story so far. You guys are all amazing! I honestly cannot believe how much love this story has got and I seriously hope I don't disappoint you all in the final parts of it. I have a feeling it's going to be a lot tougher to write than the other two films.

Hope you have a lovely week, and until the next update! :) x


	34. Chapter Thirty-Four

Chapter Thirty-Four

I woke up the following morning feeling no better than I had the night before. Fili was gently shaking my shoulders and as I sat up, I smiled slightly at the gentle look on his face.

"What is it?" I asked, stifling a yawn.

"Everyone's leaving. To go into the mountain, I mean." He elaborated.

"Into the mountain? Everyone?"

"Yes. Apparently, according to Balin, that was where Thorin has been all night. They are saying that Smaug is dead."

"How do they know?" I asked. How could they possibly know that? Unless they'd taken a midnight trip down there, which I highly doubted.

"A few of the company are saying that they saw something fall last night-although until this morning they were not sure what it was."

"And how are they sure now?"

"A raven has returned to the mountain. Like the portents say they will once the Dragon has died."

Nodding slowly, I stood up and glanced in the direction of Lake-Town. All I could see now was smoke rising from the buildings-no more flames. It certainly did _seem _like the Dragon was dead. Surely after he'd finished with Lake-Town he would have come back to finish us off, right? "Well, it certainly…makes sense…" I said, trying to give him a smile. Albeit, it was a strained smile, but it was something.

Sending me a smile back, he took my hand and led me into the mountain. The others had already gone (apparently when Fili said everybody's leaving, what he really meant was they'd all left and he'd stayed behind so I could get some more sleep, bless him) bar Kili who was waiting beside the entrance. I smiled at him as we walked down the corridors, breathing deeply as we got closer to where Smaug had nearly killed me and Bilbo. I did not have pleasant memories of this place so far.

It seemed like a much quicker walk than the one it took before (perhaps that's because I was dreading how I'd find Thorin). Gripping Fili's hand a little tighter, I inhaled slightly as we rounded the corner to the treasure room. I don't think I could ever get used to this much gold and jewels, no matter how much time I spent down here. It was all a bit surreal.

However at this moment, it wasn't the gold that held my attention; it was the Dwarf that was standing to the edge of it, looking up at us with a strange look on his face as we walked across a ledge above.

"Gold…" muttered Thorin. "Gold beyond measure. Beyond sorrow and grief. Behold- the great treasure hoard of Thror." Flinching a little as Thorin threw something up to Fili, I looked down to see a dark, ruby jewel in his hand. "Welcome, my sister's sons, to the Kingdom of Erebor!"

"Fili…" I whispered.

"I know." he replied.

-8-

I watched from the sidelines as the Dwarves hunted high and low in the gold for the Arkenstone. Thorin was barely giving them a minute to rest and it was showing on their faces. They were all giving quite worried looks towards their leader who was staring into the distance with a crazed look in his eye. He even had Fili and Kili searching, although they didn't look as if they were really trying. I couldn't blame them. If this was what Thorin was like without the Arkenstone, I dreaded to think about what would happen if he _did_ have it.

Me and Bilbo, however, had opted to remain out of it. He alone seemed to be openly expressing his concern towards Thorin with me and I was thankful for it. Although I knew others in the company shared my thoughts and feelings. (I'd said when we first went down to meet him that we should go and help those in Lake-Town instead of searching for a stupid jewel (something that Bilbo had thoroughly agreed with me on), something Thorin did not appreciate if his vicious reply was anything to go by). But it was obvious they weren't going to do anything about it; they were too loyal and while that was something that I loved about them all, right now it was annoying.

"Any sign of it?" yelled Thorin.

"Nothing yet." Replied Dwalin.

"Nothing here." Added Nori, who was on the opposite side.

"Keep searching!"

"That jewel could be anywhere!" exclaimed Oin, kicking some coins with his boot.

"The Arkenstone is in these halls; find it!" bellowed Thorin.

"You heard him, keep looking!" said Dwalin.

"All of you, no one rests until it's found!"

Squeezing my eyes shut, I turned towards Bilbo who was looking as uneasy as I felt. "Bilbo, what the hell are we going to do?"

"Well, I uh…can I show you something?" he whispered, sending a frantic look towards Thorin.

"What? Yeah, what is it?" I asked, walking with him to an abandoned corridor wondering what could have the Hobbit so on edge.

"You mustn't tell anyone! Not even Fili." He replied, looking more serious than I could ever remember him looking.

"Bilbo, I can't lie to Fili, okay? That's not even an option. Me and Fili don't lie to each other, I…"

"I'm not asking you to lie to him. Just don't say anything." I sighed. Keeping anything from Fili did not sit well with me. It couldn't lead to anything good, but what Bilbo wanted to show me must be important, especially if he wanted to keep it so secret. "And if he does say anything, just say I told you not to say anything. You wouldn't be lying. I just…I can't keep this to myself, and out of everyone here, you're the one I trust the most. Please."

Fiddling with my ring, I nodded. "Okay, what is it?"

"I…I managed to…pick this up." Wondering what the hell he was talking about, my eyes widened as he pulled out the Arkenstone from his coat pocket. I recognised it from when we'd seen it earlier. It looked as beautiful as it had before and although I couldn't understand why Thorin was going completely mad over it, I couldn't deny its beauty.

"Bilbo…" I breathed. "What the hell have you done?"

"I…I took it. Before. When we escaped from Smaug."

"I figured that out, Bilbo, but…_why? _Thorin is going to kill you if he finds out! What do you think is going to happen when he doesn't find it down there?! Who do you think he's going to turn to? We're the only ones that have been down here before!"

"I didn't think that far ahead! But I…I don't know what to do. I…"

"It's okay, Bilbo." I said, placing the Arkenstone back into his pocket. "It's going to be okay. We'll figure a way out of this. Somehow."

"It is here in these halls; I know it." I heard Thorin say as Bilbo and I returned. Well he wasn't wrong… Thorin was talking to Dwalin and Balin who both cast uneasy looks to each other as they stood to the side.

"We have searched and searched…" tried Dwalin.

"Not well enough!"

"Thorin, we all would see the stone returned."

"And yet, it is still not _found!_"

"Do you doubt the loyalty of anyone here?" asked Balin, gently. I cast Bilbo a worried look. Loyalty seemed like it had many meanings these days. "The Arkenstone is the birthright of our people."

"It is the King's Jewel" growled Thorin. "_Am I not the KING?_" I flinched back at his hard tone. It seemed like the days of trying to talk any sense into Thorin were over. I had _never _seen him like this. "Know this: if anyone should find it and withhold it from me, I will be avenged."

Watching as Thorin strode away, me and Bilbo turned towards Balin, who was the only Dwarf still standing in front of us. He was breathing deeply as if he was trying to withhold his emotions and I couldn't blame him. It couldn't be easy seeing your friend like this.

"Dragon-sickness." He said, looking at us. "I've seen it before. That look. That terrible need. It is a fierce and jealous love. It sent his grandfather mad." I remembered what Fili had said to me the previous night, about how he was worried he would turn out like Thorin was. I couldn't imagine him like that; that crazed look in his eye where he barely recognised anyone. Would he still recognise me?

"Balin." Said Bilbo, breaking my train of thought. "If…if Thorin…had the Arkenstone…if it was found…would it help?"

"That stone crowns all. It is the summit of this great wealth, bestowing power upon he who bears it. Will it stay his madness? No, lad; I fear it would make it worse. Perhaps it is best that it remains lost."

Breathing slowly out as Balin walked away, I exchanged a look with Bilbo. Maybe Balin was right? Maybe Bilbo _had _done the right thing and taken the Arkenstone? Maybe Thorin would just accept that it was lost? But even I know that those thoughts were basically a load of crap. From what I'd seen, Thorin was obsessed with the stone. He wasn't going to rest until he found it, that much was clear. And if he knew that Bilbo had taken it (and that _I _knew he had taken it), I didn't even want to hear what his take on 'avenged' was. I had a feeling it wouldn't be nice in the slightest. I think I'd rather go up against Azog than face Thorin and his fury.

Squeezing Bilbo's hand, I walked away back into the treasure room where the remainder of the Dwarves were still busy searching. They'd begun to dig a bit lower than last I'd seen them- I could barely see the top of Bombur's head. Thorin was too busy staring at the gold again to notice that I'd come in, so moving around the gold, I eventually managed to locate Fili who was around the other side of the pile kicking at the coins like he wasn't even trying to find the stone.

"Having fun?" I asked, sending him a crooked smile.

"Not really." He replied, aggressively kicking a green stone into the distance.

"Fils…" I took a step towards him. "It's going to be okay. We're going to get through this."

Fili chuckled sadly. "Look who's being the optimistic one now."

"Who would've thought, huh?" I joked. "Thorin is going to be okay."

"Is he?" asked Fili, tears in his eyes as he looked down at me. "Are you sure? I have never seen Uncle like this and…he swore he was not like his grandfather. I heard him say that. And now…" I saw him swallow. "I'm saying now that I'm not like that, that it won't affect me…what if it does? What if being here changes me? What if I scare you away or…?" Narrowing my eyes at him, I silently took his hand and lead him down a random corridor. "Miz sanâzyung, where on earth are we going?"

Not saying a word (and actually having no idea where I was leading him), I carried on dragging him towards a random destination. Eventually deciding we'd walked far enough, I opened a door to a random room and pulled him inside. "Okay, first things first. You are talking nonsense. I have already told you that you are _not _going to end up like that. Not in a million years. But if, and I'm saying _if_ you do, you wouldn't scare me away." I held my hand up to his cheek, rubbing my thumb against his skin. "I'm in it for life, remember?" I held my hand with the ring on up. "Forever. Listen, I know it must be so hard to see your Uncle like this. Not himself. I…I remember when I was little; I used to see my mum stagger around the house after taking god only knows what. She used to…to uh…yell things at me, throw things at me…it was awful. And I never told anyone anything because…well, I was five. I barely knew my right from my left, what was I supposed to say about my mother that scared me to death half the time?" I looked at the ground. Not once had I told anyone this. "I used to tell myself that that wasn't really her. She would wake up the next morning, and she would have cooked this massive breakfast; eggs, bacon, toast even though I knew she felt like shit. You could see it in her face but she was trying…and I thought that everything would go back to normal. Until one day she just didn't wake up."

"Miz sanâzyung…I'm sorry you had to go through that…"

"No, you're missing the point. I know what it's like to be around someone who's not themselves. And Thorin isn't like himself and I will be the first to admit that it's scaring me. But Bilbo…" I clamped my mouth shut. For a minute there, I had almost let it slip that Bilbo had the Arkenstone.

"Bilbo what?" asked Fili, furrowing his eyebrows.

"Bilbo…has been helping me. Talking to me, ya know? I just…have a feeling that Thorin will get through this. It may take a while and it may take something big to shock him out of it but…I think it will all work out." Okay, so maybe I was stretching the truth a little (try a lot) but Fili needed the reassurance. And if this was what it took, I would say whatever I could.

"I'm sorry." He muttered, wrapping his arms around my waist in a hug. "I shouldn't be worrying you with this."

"Hey, I told you. You can come to me with anything, okay?" I smiled. "You've helped me so much on this journey. Let me repay the favour."

"Thank you. And…thank you, for telling me about your past. That couldn't have been easy to talk about." I shrugged in response. Truth was, however hard it was to think about the fact that my mum was basically unrecognizable during the last few months I'd known her, despite my young age, I'd come to terms with it years ago. It was something that I'd just had to live with. "When this is over, we'll be a proper family. Just you wait."

Nodding in reply, I looked up at him with a smile. "Yeah…I wish we were back in Lake-Town…" I whispered, burying my head into the crook of his neck.

"Oh really?" he smirked, knowing full well what I was talking about.

"Uh huh. It was nice. Like we didn't have anything to worry about." Kissing him slowly, I sighed happily against his lips. "We should probably be getting back now. They might be wondering where we've gone."

"Of course." He replied with a small smile he always seemed to wear every time we'd kiss, walking me towards the door. Following him out into the hallway, I frowned as he looked back at me with a confused expression. "Do you remember the way back?"

-8-

It took us nearly an hour to find our way back; apparently I had been too preoccupied trying to get _away_ from the treasure chamber to pay attention to where I was going. In the end, it had been Fili who'd got us back. He'd actually tried to look where we were going.

Not even bothering to go and pretend to look for the Arkenstone once we'd got back, I kissed Fili good-bye as he made his way over to his brother and took a seat next to Bilbo who was sitting on a bench with this head in his hands.

We sat there in silence for a while, not really knowing what to do. What was there to do? It wasn't as if we were actually going to _find _the Arkenstone in all that gold.

"What is that?!" I heard Thorin yell, suddenly. Startled, I nearly fell off the bench as he strode over to where we were sitting. "In your hand!" Furrowing my eyebrows, I looked at Bilbo (who had stood up all in a fluster) who was clutching something to his chest.

"I…it's nothing." Stuttered Bilbo, giving me a brief worried look which I returned.

"Show me."

"It…" He held out his hand, revealing a small acorn. "I picked it up in Beorn's garden."

"You've carried it all this way." Said Thorin lowly, finally looking the sanest he'd looked since stepping into the mountain.

"I'm going to plant it in my garden…in Bag-End."

"That's a poor price to take back to the Shire." Muttered Thorin, a fond smile on his face.

"One day it'll grow. And every time I look at it, I'll remember…remember everything that happened, the good…the bad. And how lucky I am that I made it home." I heard him swallow thickly. "Thorin, I…"

"Thorin." Interrupted Dwalin, running up to the three of us. "Survivors…from Lake-town. They are streaming into Dale. There's hundreds of them!"

"Call everyone to the gate." Replied Thorin, his face switching from the fond smile to a stern, uncompromising expression in a split second. "To the gate! _Now!_"

Standing up on shaky feet, I squeezed my eyes shut. I should be happy. I'd just found out that there were hundreds of survivors from Lake-Town…there were _survivors_! So why did I feel like things were about to get much, much worse?

-8-

A/N: I'm baaaaaaaackkkkkk! For good this time! Updates will begin again every few weeks! After all, I'm getting into exam season soon so I'll be busy with that.

But no one is happy here, things are stressful and the battle is not far away! What will happen, I wonder?

Let me know what you think? Drop a review! Much love to everyone who's stuck with me to this point, and everyone new as well! I can't believe how many people have followed this story. It's unbelievable! Until next time!


	35. Chapter Thirty-Five

Chapter Thirty-Five

I could only stand and watch as Thorin ordered the company around and what I was seeing, I could barely believe. Thorin had instructed (well, more like ordered) for the Dwarves to block up the front entrance that Smaug had broken through on his rampage to Lake-Town for reasons that I could not understand. Bilbo and I had barely said a word since they'd started, actually. Too shocked by the recent turn of events to actually do anything, and not strong enough to help (not that we'd know what to actually do anyway). They were using a combination of strange levers and brute strength to move the stones. If the situation wasn't so grave, the sight of Fili lifting the blocks with nothing but a shirt on would have been quite pleasant. Not that I was staring. Oh no…

"I want this fortress made safe by sunup." Growled Thorin. "This mountain was hard won; I will not see it taken again."

"The people of Lake-Town have nothing." Said Kili, peering around from a large boulder he was standing behind with a frown on his face. "They came to us in need. They have lost everything."

"Do not tell me what _they_ have lost. I know well enough their hardship. Those who have lived through dragonfire should rejoice. They have much to be grateful for." My mouth gaped open at his words. I knew that Thorin was becoming a little...well, mad, but now he was being downright cold. "More stone! Bring more stone to the gate!"

Sighing with Bilbo, I made up my mind. The Dwarves may not be saying anything to Thorin, but that didn't mean that I wasn't going to. Someone needed to talk some sense into him.

"Thorin, Kili is right." I said, walking towards the Dwarf. "We need to help them, not lock them out."

I had to restrain myself from not taking a step back as Thorin glared at me. Not once had he ever looked at me that way and I had to admit, it hurt a little. "And what would you know of this, Miss Osbourne?" he growled, taking heavy steps towards me.

"Well, they…er…they helped us." I stuttered. "Gave us shelter, food, weapons! Without them, we could not have made it to the mountain and because of us, their entire town is now a pile of ashes! And you are standing there acting like…they are just some big hindrance. This is not like you, Thorin. You have changed."

Actually taking a step back as Thorin continued to advance, I winced as he spoke. "I have not changed." He said, lowly. "Do not speak of matters of which you know nothing of. I would not expect you to understand."

"I do understand. More than you think. You are losing your mind over a stupid jewel that means nothing, despite what you think, and you are ignoring the cries for help from hundreds of people who have lost everything!"

"You will not speak to me like that!" Thorin cried, now standing mere inches in front of me with wide eyes. "I am a King! You are nothing but a mere human; you are not our kin! You have no more right to be in this mountain than those people out there!" Taking a step back in shock at his words, I could vaguely hear the others stop what they were doing and listen to what we were saying.

"Do not speak to her that way!" shouted Fili, pushing past Dwalin so he was standing in front of his uncle. "She is my One! She is one of us! You have no right to speak to her like that!"

"Do not be a fool, Fili. She is human, she knows nothing of Dwarven culture. She is not fit to court a son of Durin, let alone be Queen."

I felt my eyes tear up at his words. Of course Thorin was right; these were the insecurities I'd been having the past few nights, and for Thorin of all people to bring them up obviously meant that I had been right in what I was thinking. How could I ever be Queen? Let alone Queen of a race I didn't know much about? I mean, I'd travelled with these Dwarves for little under a year, and I still didn't know everything about them. But Thorin could have been wrong. I could learn, surely?

"Don't you dare…"

"It's okay, Fili." I said, cutting him off.

"Amaya, _that_ is not okay."

"No, really. It is." I nodded, giving him a soft but pointed look. "It's nothing I didn't already know. But…I still stand by what I'm saying. Of all people, you should understand what they are going through. You are not acting like a leader should. Any man that has to say 'I am a King' is not a true king at all." Never would I think I would ever quote Tywin Lannister, but there you go. But I could tell that my words did not go down well if the throbbing vein on Thorin's forehead was anything to go by. "I am sorry Thorin, but this needs saying and if no one else is going to say it, then I will have to. You basically saved me when I first found myself in this world, you've helped me and introduced me to everyone here and have quickly become family, and I cannot just stand by and watch you drive yourself mad with this fool's errand."

Narrowing my eyes defensively as Thorin stepped around Fili (who was now glaring openly at his uncle), I breathed in deeply as I vaguely saw his hand twitch towards the sword on his belt. "Miss Osbourne." He said, so lowly I had to strain to hear him. "If I hear you say anything like that to me again, I swear to Mahal, I do not care who you are, I will not hesitate to…"

"To what, _your majesty?_" I interrupted. "To kill me?"

I breathed deeply for a couple of seconds as Thorin just continued to glare at me before he turned swiftly around. "More stone!" he yelled, causing all of the Dwarves who had been frowning at our argument to quickly get back to work.

"Amaya, he was not right in what he said." Said Fili, taking a hold of my hand. "You are _everything_ to me. You have every right to be here."

"I know." I smiled, sadly. "It's just…Thorin saying that… but I'm okay, really I am. Go, Kili's waving you over." Squeezing his hand, I smiled softly as he walked towards his brother, concern in his eyes as he glanced back at me.

"You shouldn't have said any of that. I agree with every word you've said, but I don't think it was wise to say it right now." said Bilbo, who had come to stand beside me.

"Someone had to. I just…wasn't expecting some of what he said." I replied, shaking my head. "Not that he was wrong."

"Don't be stupid." Snapped Bilbo, making me face him in alarm. Bilbo never snapped. "None of the rest of us thinks that. You shouldn't either. Fili loves you more than anything, anyone can see that and I'm certain that no one can think of anyone else who is more fit for him than you are."

"Thank you, Bilbo." I sniffed.

-8-

I couldn't believe how quickly it took the Dwarves to block the entrance. It was barely a couple of hours later when Thorin was calling everyone over to the gate. I had been busy thinking in an empty room I'd found. Despite what I'd said to Fili, Thorin's words had hurt. The words 'Nothing but a human.' and 'Not our kin' kept running through my mind. Thorin was right, of course. I didn't really have much right in being here. I'd just tagged along on the journey, after all. Meeting Fili and coming to love him was just an extremely good consequence of joining them. I didn't really serve much purpose, and now all I seemed to be doing was causing a rift between Fili and his Uncle. Nothing good was happening in this mountain.

Sighing to myself, I heaved myself up and walked over to where the rest of the company was. They were climbing up a set of stairs that they had created out of the stones, outfits complete with weapons. I wasn't sure what the weapons were going to be for (what could possibly be up there to fight?), but I knew that whatever Thorin was calling us over for wasn't going to be good.

Making my way to the top of the stones, my mouth fell open as I saw the scene in front of me. The walls of Dale were filled with Elves all dressed in armor and weapons and the man that I recognised as Bard had ridden to the front of the gate.

"Who are you that come armed for war to the gates of Thorin son of Thrain, King under the Mountain?" boomed Thorin, his face set in a stern scowl. I furrowed my eyebrows. Thorin knew who Bard was, surely? We'd met him a couple of weeks earlier…

"Hail Thorin!" replied the bowman. "Why do you fence yourself like a robber in his hold? We are not yet foes, and we rejoice that you are alive beyond our hope. We came expecting to find none living here; yet now that we are met there is matter for a parley and a council."

"Who are you, and of what would you parley?"

"I am Bard." He said, keeping his patience. "And by my hand was the dragon slain and your treasure delivered. Is that not a matter that concerns you? Moreover I am by right descent the heir of Girion of Dale, and in your hoard is mingled much of the wealth of his halls and towns, which of old Smaug stole. Is not that a matter of which we may speak? Further in his last battle Smaug destroyed the dwellings of the men of Esgaroth, and I am yet the servant of the Master. I would speak for him and ask whether you have no thought for the sorrow and misery of his people. They aided you in your distress, and in recompense you have thus far brought ruin only, though doubtless undesigned." I sighed. What Bard was saying was completely fair and true, even if it was phrased in a way that was obviously trying to keep Thorin's anger from flaring. But I doubted whether any of what Bard had said had made any impact on Thorin. The hold that the gold had over Thorin was strong, and it was doubtful that he would part with any of it.

"You put your worst cause last and in the chief place." Replied Thorin. "To the treasure of my people no man has a claim, because Smaug stole it from us also robbed him of life or home. The treasure was not his that his evil deeds should be amended with a share of it. The price of the goods and the assistance that we received of the Lake-men we will fairly pay- in due time. But _nothing_ will we give, not even a loaf's worth, under threat of force. While an armed host lies before our doors, we look on you as foes and thieves. It is in my mind to ask what share of their inheritance you would have paid to our kindred, had you found the hoard unguarded and us slain." I cast a wary look at the other members of the company. Some of them (which included Ori, Bofur, Fili, Kili and Bilbo) seemed visibly worried at Thorin's words, and while the others didn't seem affected, I could tell they weren't exactly happy about them. Or I hoped so, at least.

"A just question." Said Bard, holding his hands out. "But you are not dead, and we are not robbers. Moreover the wealthy may have pity beyond right on the needy that befriended them when they were in want. And still my other claims remain unanswered."

"I will not parley, as I have said, with armed men at my gate." Growled Thorin, causing me to sigh in exasperation. I may have seen it coming, but the tiny bubble of hope that I still had had just been popped. "Nor at all with the people of the Elvenking, whom I remember with small kindness. In this debate they have no place. Begone now ere our arrows fly! And if you would speak with me again, first dismiss the Elvish host to the woods where it belongs, and then return, laying down your arms before you approach the threshold."

"The Elvenking is my friend, and he has succoured the people of the Lake in their need, though they had no claim but friendship on him. We will give you time to repent your words. Gather your wisdom ere we return!" I watched with dismay as Bard got back on his horse and rode back towards Dale with narrowed eyes. What had Thorin done? Was he _completely _out of his mind?

"Thorin!" I yelled, racing after him down the steps.

"What would you say to me now, Miss Osbourne?" replied Thorin, not turning around.

"I understand you not giving any of the treasure to the Elves, they've done nothing to help us, but Bard deserves some of that treasure. They all do. And I highly doubt that the army out there is for decoration."

"Their threats do not sway me."

"Okay, they may not. But what about your promise? You promised them a share of the treasure, and that was before Lake-Town was destroyed! They need it now more than ever! You should stand by your promise!"

"Promise?" he spat. "What choice did I have but to barter our birthright for blankets and food? To ransom our future in exchange for our freedom? Do you call that a fair promise?"

"But…but you cannot go to _war_!" exclaimed Bilbo, running up to stand next to me.

"This does not concern you, Master Baggins."

"It concerns all of us!" I shouted. "There is an entire _army_ of Elves out there. And several hundred humans. I don't know if you've noticed, but we are a bit outnumbered."

"Not for much longer." Thorin smirked.

"What are you saying?"

"I am saying, Miss Osbourne, that you should never underestimate Dwarves."

"Oh, I had learnt that a long time ago, trust me! But you _cannot_ go to war, it shouldn't even be an option! Why can't you just give him their share of the gold? Do the right thing!"

"No! I will not give a single coin to those fishermen outside my gate! But if you agree with them so much, then go ahead. Be my guest and join them. But be aware, if you leave this kingdom, do not come back!" snarled Thorin, turning his back and marching out of the chamber without a second glance.

Muttering under my breath, I was fully prepared to march out the opposite way before a hand clamped around my arm.

"Lass." Said Dwalin, giving me a surprisingly soft look. "Don't go and do anything rash now."

I chuckled humourlessly. "Don't worry, Dwalin. I won't. I just need some time to think, okay? I need to calm down."

"Amaya?" asked Fili.

"Seriously, I won't do anything, Fee. I'll catch up with you in a while, okay? I swear. I'll see you later." Taking a deep breath to calm myself down, I turned and walked down a random corridor, fully aware of Bilbo running to catch up with me.

"Amaya!" he exclaimed, quietly. Turning to face him, I gave him an expectant look. "I…I have a plan." My eyes widened. Bilbo had a plan? This was good news! "And I'm going to need your help."

-8-

A/N: so now the trouble has _really_ started! Bilbo has a plan? I wonder what that could be?

Let me know what you think with a review! I love to hear your opinions! And a big thank you to everyone who has followed this story. I love you all. :D


	36. Chapter Thirty-Six

Chapter Thirty-Six

"Bilbo…that…I really don't know about this." I said, quietly. We'd moved into a random room off to the side to get away from anyone that could be listening. "It just feels like…we're betraying them." Bilbo's 'grand' idea turned out to be giving the Arkenstone to Bard. Obviously, I was now feeling less than comfortable about the whole idea. "Aside from the fact that there's barely a chance that we can actually _get_ the stone to Bard, what do you think Thorin is going to say when he finds out what we did? God, what are the _others_ going to say?!"

Bilbo ran a hand down his face as he took a deep breath. "I know, I know. But what else is there to do? Nothing we say is getting through to him, this is the _only_ way I can think of, Amaya!" He exclaimed. It was clear the stress of the entire situation was getting to him, and I have to say, I felt exactly the same.

"No, I understand that, Bilbo. I just…if Fili were to ever find out that I was apart of all of this, I don't know whether he would forgive me. I don't think that I can risk that, Bilbo."

"Amaya, I wouldn't be telling you this if it wasn't important. But what do you think is going to happen if we don't do anything? We _can't_ let them go to war." I squeezed my eyes shut at Bilbo's words. He was right; doing this could potentially stop a war, a war which we would definitely loose. I may have been miles better with a sword than I had been at the beginning of this journey, but I was no where near the level of the Dwarves. And there was only thirteen of them for God's sake! An entire army was outside.

"Bilbo…I…I agree with you. You know I do. But…"

"Amaya, all I am asking is for you to make sure that no one knows that I have gone while I am down with Bard. And anyway, if any of them find out, I will take the blame. I mean it." he insisted at my furrowed eyebrows. "I am the one that has dragged you into this. I took the Arkenstone and I am asking you not to say anything. I know this isn't easy on you. But you must trust me. I…I think this will work."

I sighed. This honestly seemed like the only way. But I didn't even want to think of what Thorin's reaction was going to be when he found out. He was bad enough when he couldn't even find it. When he found out that Bilbo had taken it and given it to those he now considered enemies, and that _I_ knew, there was no way we would be welcome in the Mountain again. But what other way was there? What else would give Thorin the incentive he needed?

"…Okay. I will try. But…how are you actually going to get out of here?" I asked, my stomach now full of nerves.

"Bombur is on watch first tonight. I…I am planning to offer to take over his watch. I will be able to climb over the wall, offer the stone to Bard and be back here by the time it is turn for the next watcher. All I need for you to do is make sure that nobody knows that I am gone.

"Okay." I replied. "But you better pray that this works." What the hell have I got myself into?

-8-

I could barely look Fili in the eye once we'd rejoined the Dwarves. Once he'd seen me come back (honestly, I think he thought I'd been planning to run off or something after Thorin's words), he'd given me a gentle smile and pulled me to his side, obviously trying to give me reassurance that he had paid no attention to what Thorin had said. I was incredibly thankful for his support, although it was making me feel more and more guilty for what Bilbo and I were planning.

"Are you okay, miz sanâzyung?" he asked, pulling me to the side.

"Yeah, I'm fine." I replied, raising my hand to rest against his cheek. I'm not sure why at that moment I was feeling so affectionate. Maybe it was due to the fact that if me and Bilbo were found out, I wouldn't be this close to Fili in Lord only knows how long. "Like I said, I just needed time to think." Subconsciously twisting my hand around the braid I had made in his hair, I glanced around to see that everybody else was making there way to somewhere. "Where is everybody going?" I asked.

"Down to the armory." Replied Fili, lowly. "Thorin has…he has said that everybody must be equipped with armour."

I let out a shaky breath at Fili's words. "This cannot end in war, Fee. We…we wouldn't win. I can't…I can't loose you."

"Amaya." he said, sternly. "Listen. I swear to Mahal, whatever happens, _nothing_ will happen to you. I am going to keep you safe, whatever it takes."

"Fili, I don't care about that. I can't live without _you_. I can't let this end in war." I paused for a moment. I could trust Fili. He saw what was wrong in Thorin's behaviour. He would understand…I could tell him. "Fili, listen…I need to tell you something…"

"Fili, Blondie!" shouted Kili from across the room, interrupting what I was going to say. "Are you coming?"

"You can tell me later, okay?" asked Fili, already leading me towards where his brother was waiting. Sighing to myself, I nodded. I had no idea when I would find the time to tell him now. But would I have actually told him just then? God, my mind was every kind of confused.

The armory itself _was_ pretty impressive, even I had to admit. As Fili went off with his brother to go and find himself some armour (the thought still gave me uncomfortable shivers), I slid down the side of a nearby column. Looking around at a load of weapons didn't strike me as interesting at this particular moment in time. In fact, it would have just scared me. From the corner of my eye, I saw Bilbo make his way over to me, no doubt to go over what he was to do tonight. However, just as Bilbo was a few metres away, Thorin stepped in his way, obviously completely oblivious to my presence there.

"Master Baggins!" he said, actually sounding somewhat normal as he spoke. "You are going to need this. Put it on." Glancing around the column, I saw Bilbo eye what looked like a thin, silver vest. No doubt about it, it was pretty beautiful. "This vest is made of silver steel, Mithril, it was called by my forebears. No blade can pierce it."

"I look absurd!" replied the Hobbit, once he had put the vest on, making me bite back a snort. "I'm not a warrior, I'm a Hobbit!"

"It is a gift." Said Thorin. "A token of our friendship. True friends are hard to come by." He then lowered his voice so I had to strain to listen. "I have been blind. Now I begin to see. I am betrayed." My eyes widened at Thorin's words. Did he know?

"Betrayed?" repeated Bilbo, and I could hear the worry in his voice.

"The Arkenstone. One of them has taken it. One of them is false."

"Thorin…the quest is fulfilled. You've won the Mountain. Is that not enough?" _Please say yes, please say yes…_

"Betrayed by my own kin." Continued Thorin. _Damn._

"No, eh…you… you made a promise…to the people of Lake-Town, like Amaya said. Is…is this treasure truly worth more than your honour? _Our _honour, Thorin. I was also there, I gave my word."

"For that I am grateful. It was nobly done. But the treasure in this mountain does not belong to the people of _Lake-Town_! This gold…is ours…and ours alone. By my life, I will not part with a single coin. Not…one…piece of it!" I shivered at the low tone of Thorin's voice as he spoke, what he said reminding me of what Smaug had said. In fact, those sounded like the _exact_ words that Smaug had said…

"I find it very ironic that he would say all that to you, of all people." I joked when Bilbo had finally come over. Well, I say 'joked'. It was more of a statement with an awkward chuckle on the end. "Looking good, Baggins. That's a good look on you."

"No doubt I will be thankful to have this in the end. Although I do not deserve it." he replied, giving Thorin (who was now across the room) a saddened look. I knew of the new friendship that had sprung up between the two, and I had barely stopped to consider how this must be affecting Bilbo.

"You are doing what you think is right, Bilbo. As am I. And although this doesn't seem like the best way to do it, I think that it truly is the _only _way."

Bilbo nodded thoughtfully, and just as he was about to reply, I heard Fili call my name. "Amaya! Come here for a second. Please?" I smiled at the 'please' on the end as I said a quick bye to Bilbo. He obviously remembered what I had told him about the women in my world; we did not like being ordered around.

"What is it?" I asked, finally standing next to him. He had been about as far away from me as he could have got.

"You need something to protect yourself with. I told you I would keep you safe, and I will, but…if worst comes to worst…" And by that, he obviously meant, 'if I am not alive to keep you safe', "then I want to know that you have something to defend yourself with." Nodding at his words, I looked around at where we were standing. "There is not exactly a lot of choice with armour that can fit you." he continued. "But I have managed to find _some_. But it is not much, at least not as much as I would like…"

"It will be enough." I said, placing a hand on his arm in assurance.

-8-

In the end, I'd come away with a little bit of armour and a couple of small swords which Fili had said I was best with and insisted I needed to take. I couldn't lay down that night to get to sleep. I needed to keep a watch out for Bilbo anyway, and despite that, I don't think I could have slept anyway. Instead, I leant my head against the wall as I sat, content to just sit by Fili's side as he lay down.

"Are you not going to sleep?" he asked, frowning slightly. "You should rest while you can."

I smiled softly at him. "I'll be fine. I'm just not tired yet, is all. My mind feels all over the place." _Well, at least that wasn't a lie._

"Would you like to talk about it? I can stay up if you want."

_I should tell him…I should tell him…I should tell him…_ "No, it's fine, Fee. You get some sleep. I'll rest when I feel tired."

"Okay." He smiled, making my stomach twist with guilt. "Rest well."

Not even resisting the urge to smile as he lay his head in my lap, I proceeded to run my hands through his hair as he went to sleep, constantly glancing around the room as the rest of the company joined him.

It took little under an hour until I could be absolutely sure that the company were all asleep, and as I saw Bilbo carefully stand up from where he was lying, I could feel my heart beat a little harder in my chest. This was it, the moment of no return. God, Fili was going to hate me…but if it avoided a war…

Bilbo gave me a nod as he tiptoed by, although the scared-shitless look on his face was not hard to miss. Hopefully he lost it by the time he saw Bombur. And now all I could do was sit and wait, praying that the Dwarves didn't wake up, and hoping that this plan was actually going to work.

-8-

A/N: Okay, so I know that this is not the longest chapter in the world, but my exams have started and I am super stressed with everything that is going on at sixth form, so obviously updates are not going to be very frequent. But, in celebration of me finally having completed my extended project (which let me tell you, took so much work I pretty much lost motivation in everything else), I thought that I would post this in celebration.

I'm trying to get the point across that Amaya really does not want to get involved with the whole Arkenstone business, but at this point, she feels that she has no choice in the matter and that it's the only thing that will stop the Dwarves from going to war.

Anyway, thank you for everyone who has followed and reviewed throughout the story, and until next time!


	37. Chapter Thirty-Seven

Chapter Thirty-Seven

As it turns out, Bilbo didn't take nearly as long as I thought he would. Once he'd left my sight, it was only a couple of minutes later that Bombur appeared and lay down beside his brothers. Obviously it hadn't taken a lot of convincing on Bilbo's part to take over his watch; not that I could blame the Dwarf. They'd all been working none stop for the past few days, I didn't blame him for wanting a few hours extra sleep. I know I would.

With a miraculous stroke of luck on mine and Bilbo's part, none of the others actually woke up while the Hobbit was gone. Or if they did, they decided to simply lay there with their eyes shut. I, however, had no problem staying awake. The stress of the past few days had definitely made me tired, but the nerves from what I was doing, the worry at the reaction that the Dwarves would have when they found out and the guilt over this whole thing was enough to keep my wide awake.

Needless to say, I was surprised when I saw Bilbo sneak back into the room a couple of hours later. Gently lowering Fili's head onto the floor on top of his coat, smiling softly when his face screwed up at the loss of my presence, I tiptoed over to where Bilbo was standing in the doorway.

"Well?" I asked quietly, giving him what I was sure was a wide-eyed look.

"They accepted the stone, agreeing that there is no need for war if Thorin now gives what he owes. Although I don't think that King Thranduil looked all too thrilled to see me." He chuckled awkwardly. "Oh!" he exclaimed after a moment. "I forgot to mention, Gandalf is here!"

"Gandalf? Really?" I asked. "That's okay, then." I smiled. "Gandalf won't let this come to war. Out of everyone, he's the only one to ever talk some sense into Thorin."

"I hope." Replied Bilbo. "I need to wake Bombur. I'll talk to you in the morning, Amaya."

Nodding in agreement, I made my way back towards Fili. Swallowing down the lump in my throat, but shakily letting out a sigh of relief (for now, at least), I sat back down next to Fili. _What's done is done, _I thought to myself. _They have the Arkenstone; there is nothing I can do about it now. And if worse comes to worse…I'll have to live with it. This was my choice._

Laying myself down, I slowly closed my eyes and tried to get to sleep. However, that was easier said than done. I barely slept that night, worrying too much about what was going to happen the next day.

-8-

I woke up the next morning feeling extremely groggy. The two hours of sleep I'd managed to get had barely done me any good and, according to Fili, it had taken a lot of shaking to get me to wake.

"Are you sure you're okay?" he asked, running his hands through my hair. "You've been acting strangely for a while. It's starting to worry me."

"I'm sorry." I replied, quietly. _God, I'll probably have to say that a lot in the future…_ "I haven't been sleeping well lately."

"Yes, I've noticed." He frowned. "You barely slept last night. It's not healthy, Amaya. I know this is a stressful time, but you need to try."

Nodding softly, I allowed him to take my hand and pull me towards where the others were gathering. "What's going on? Have I missed something?" I asked, seeing them all snatching up their weapons from the floor and following Thorin up to the top of the gate with grim faces. "Fee?"

"They're advancing upon the Mountain, lass." Informed Bofur as he stepped past us with a grim expression that didn't suit the usually joyful Dwarf's face.

"What?" I sent a pointed look towards Bilbo who was waiting anxiously at the side.

"Come, miz sanâzyung." Sighed Fili, seeming far older than he was.

Keeping to the back of the company with Bilbo, I glanced over the edge of the gate to see Bard and Thranduil ride up to the front of the armies that were, indeed, right outside of the Mountain. "This can't result in anything good." I whispered to myself, taking a subtle step back as Thorin actually shot an arrow at the two leaders down below.

"I will put the next one between your eyes!" he yelled down, drawing his bow again. I frowned down at Bilbo as the Dwarves around him cheered, although I _did _notice that Fili's seemed a little forced. Him and Kili stood to the side of their uncle, as was their place as his heirs, but it was pretty obvious (to me at least), that Fili certainly did not agree with Thorin's behaviour. Not that he could say anything with everyone around; Thorin would probably say that Fili was undermining him or questioning his position as their king or something.

I grasped Bilbo's hand firmly as I saw the Elven army all draw their own bows, aiming their arrows (with what I was sure was perfect aim) directly at us. The Dwarves all ducked except for Thorin, their cheering abruptly cut off.

"We've come to tell you." announced Thranduil, signaling for the Elves to lower their weapons. "Payment of your debt has been offered…and accepted." Oh God, here it was. The moment I had been dreading.

"What payment?" snapped Thorin. "I gave you nothing! You have nothing!" _Well…_

"We have this." Countered Bard, reaching into his robe and pulling out the Arkenstone, much to the Dwarves' surprise. I glanced around as the company stared down at Bard below, obviously torn between disbelief and anger. Thorin had even lowered his bow in his disbelief.

"They have the Arkenstone?" shouted Kili. "Thieves! How came you by the heirloom of our house? That belongs to the king!"

"And the king may have it." agreed Bard, placing the stone back out of view in his robes. "In our good will. But first he must honour his word."

Bilbo and I kept to the back of the others, only observing what was going on until further notice.

"They are taking us for fools." Whispered Thorin to his men. "This is a ruse, a filthy lie." He snarled. I could see from the side Balin's shocked face, obviously still worried about his friend's deteriorating mental state. Well, at least I still wasn't alone in that. "THE ARKENSTONE IS IN THIS MOUNTAIN! IT IS A TRICK!"

Shaking partly from shock and partly from fright, I stared at Bilbo as I felt him walk forward. "Bilbo, no!" I whispered.

"It's okay." He muttered back. "It…it's no trick." He announced to the others. "The stone is real. I gave it to them." I could only stand rooted on the spot as Thorin's expression changed to sorrow and anger. Mainly anger I noticed. The others just looked shocked.

"You…"

"I took it as my fourteenth share." Bilbo continued.

"You would steal from _me_?"

"Steal from you? No. No. I may be a burglar, but I like to think I'm an honest one. I'm willing to let it stand against my claim."

"Against your claim?! Your claim! You have no claim over me you miserable rat!" Thorin threw down his bow and stalked towards Bilbo, his expression now purely anger and madness.

"I was going to give it to you…" explained Bilbo, looking fearfully towards me. "Many times I wanted to…but…"

"But _what_, thief?!"

"You are changed, Thorin! The Dwarf I met in Bag End would never have gone back on his word! Would never have doubted the loyalty of his kin!"

"Do not speak to me…of loyalty!" bellowed Thorin. I held my arms around myself, gulping when his eyes became fixed on me behind the Hobbit. "_You!_ You had a hand in this! You helped this…thief! You betrayed my kin!"

I couldn't bring myself to deny what he was saying (because what he was saying _was_ technically true), but I couldn't even find the words to defend myself as he pushed Bilbo out of the way and wrapped a hand around my throat, lifting me up roughly so I couldn't breath.

"Th…o…rin, plea…se" I chocked, unable to form any comprehensible words.

"You…you have always questioned my leadership. Have always defied me! You will _never _be queen!" I shook my head pathetically as I tried to pry his hand off of my throat.

"Thorin, let the lass go!"

"Get off of her!"

"Thorin, stop!"

"She didn't do anything!" piped up Bilbo, as Thorin unceremoniously dropped me onto the floor. Fili was immediately at my side, holding me to his chest as I tried to stop coughing. "It was all my idea. Amaya didn't know anything about it!" Seeing Bilbo's subtle pointed look in my direction, I faintly nodded in agreement, sending Bilbo a thankful look for fully taking the blame. I seriously owed this Hobbit.

Thorin only shook his head in anger. "I do not want to see your face again, _burglar!_ Throw him from the rampart!" I snapped my head towards the Dwarf in shock, as did many of the others. "DO YOU HEAR ME?!" I yelled out (as best to my ability) as Thorin grabbed Fili's arm, causing his nephew to shake him away. "Then I will do it myself! Curse you!"

"NO!" I shouted as Fili lunched after his uncle, pulling him away from the now shaking Hobbit. In the end, it took a combined effort of Fili, Kili, Dwalin, and Gloin to stop Thorin, but even after that struggle, Thorin managed to shake them all free as he grabbed Bilbo and pushed him over the rampart.

"Cursed be the wizard that forced you on this company!"

"If you don't like my burglar, then please don't damage him!" came Gandalf's voice from below. All I could think of was: finally! He'd taken his time. "Return him to me! You're not making a very splendid figure as king under the mountain, are you? Thorin, son of Thrain!"

"Never again will I have dealings with wizards…" growled Thorin as he released Bilbo. "…or Shire-rats!"

"Go…" urged Bofur, pushing Bilbo towards the rope he'd used to leave last night.

"Wait!" I croaked, leaping unsteadily onto my feet and running towards Bilbo to engulf him into a hug. "I will never forget what you did for me." I whispered into his ear. "I owe you so much, thank you. You are truly the best friend I have ever had." I smiled tearily as I pulled away. "Stay safe."

"You too." Smiled Bilbo, resting his hand on my shoulder before climbing down the rope.

"Are we resolved?" shouted up Bard as Bilbo reached the bottom. Fili had returned back to my side and was holding me tightly against his. "The return of the Arkenstone for what was promised?" Thorin remained silent; only staring into the distance, breathing heavily. "Give us your answer! Will you have peace…or war?"

My breathing turned frantically uneven as Thorin made his reply. "I will have _war_!"

-8-

Once safely back inside the Mountain, I hid myself away in an unused room; something that seemed to have become quite a habit, I'd noticed. My throat hurt every time I took a breath that was a little too deep and the hurt I felt at how Thorin had treated me seemed to get worse as every minute passed. Of course, he'd had every right to act that way. He was right, I _had _betrayed them. _But you had to…_ a voice in my mind said. _But it didn't make any difference, did it?_ I thought back.

After Thorin's, may I say very _bad_, decision, he'd sent word to his cousin Dain (who was leading his army here) to make haste. Not finding the strength to be around him any longer, I'd quickly got out of there, leaving me alone with my own thoughts. Something that was never good.

A knock at the door snapped me out of my daze. I snapped my head up upon hearing the door open, only to come face to face with Fili's stern stare. Closing the door behind him, I avoided his gaze as he came and sat beside me.

"You knew." It wasn't a question, and I could only nod at his statement, not even able to meet his eyes. "Why?"

"Why?" I repeated, finally looking back at him. His expression held nothing but hurt, and I found myself wishing he was angry. Anything would be better than this. "I'm not saying what we did was…good, or…or right…but it was the only thing that Bilbo and I could think of! Well…Bilbo could think of. He only told me a couple of days ago and the guilt has been eating me up the entire time! Thorin was going to get us all killed!" I sniffed. "I'm not saying that forgives what I've done, it doesn't and there isn't anything I can do that can make this up to you. And I did try to tell you, truly. But I either couldn't find the right time…or we were interrupted…or…

"Fili, I truly thought that it would solve everything. I told you, we can't let this end in war. I didn't want to loose you; I _don't _want to loose you. I did what I did to try and keep you safe. Even if it ended in you hating me, I would know you were safe."

"This is why you have been acting strangely." Said Fili, his voice still sounding monotone.

"I…yes. It is. Fili, please! I still love you! With everything I have. Which I why I couldn't stand back and do nothing. Please, I never wanted to lie to you. Please, _please_, don't hate me."

Finishing my plea, all I could do was just sit there and stare at Fili's face as he stared into nothingness. I had no idea what he was thinking; a fact that scared me. I could nearly always tell what he was thinking. It must have been a couple of minutes (that felt more like an hour) before he finally spoke again.

"I could never hate you." he said, his hand coming to rest on the side of my face, making me smile softly. "I…I understand why you did it, even if you did not handle it in the best of ways. What I don't understand is why you didn't tell me. Don't you trust me?"

"Fee, I trust you with my life. How could you not know that? And truly, I _did _try to tell you, I really did. But I was scared! Bilbo had told me this…this _huge _thing and I had no idea how you were going to react. Thorin is your uncle, you have this bond with him that I can't come between. If Thorin had found out…I couldn't do that to Bilbo! But I _was_ going to tell you, I just…"

"Okay." He interrupted. "Listen, Amaya…I'm not saying that I understand every reason why you did what you did. Or that I can condone your actions." I hung my head. "But…" he titled my face up by placing his fingers under my chin. "I love you. You are my One, and I told you I would stand beside you. And I will. I'm not going to tell anyone." He paused. "Someone needed to do something, and you and Bilbo were the only ones to actually be brave enough to do it, and I admire you for that. All I ask is that you never keep anything from me again. Our bond is formed from trust. I need to know I can trust you."

"You can trust me! I swear Fils, I'll come to you first. Just…do you forgive me?" Because I really needed his forgiveness. What would I do if I didn't have the company? Fili?

Fili smiled. "There is nothing to forgive."

Breathing a sigh of relief, I immediately sealed my lips with his, taking him by surprise as his hands steadied me by the waist. "Thank you. I don't deserve you." I muttered against his lips. He merely moved my hair back away from my face, his smile disappearing when he saw my throat.

"Thorin should not have laid a hand on you." he growled, his eyes darkening at the faint bruise which had started to form. "If anyone ever touches you again…"

"I don't think they would dare with you around." I joked, smiling at the short laugh that sounded out of his mouth.

"No." he said, in all seriousness. "Because anyone that would dare hurt you would have to answer to me. And I swear, they would regret it."

-8-

A/N: oh my god! It has been sooooooooo long since my last update! Sorry! But I have had so, so much going on lately. I got an unconditional offer from my university so obviously I'm incredibly happy about that! You have no idea! But now all my exams have started, so hopefully I'll have more time to update after they've finished which will be around the middle of June. Until then, I'll probably have a very stressful time!

Hopefully this chapter is up to scratch. And the drama keeps on going! I had multiple scenarios about how this was going to happen, but this one seemed like the best one for what is going to happen later on, I think. And oh dear, tensions are running high between the Durin's…whatever could be happening next?

Please remember to favourite and review! Some happiness in these dark, dark times!


	38. Chapter Thirty-Eight

Chapter Thirty-Eight

I'd spent the night away from the rest of the company. I didn't want to see any of them after everything that had happened; and especially after what Thorin had said to me. I thoroughly deserved it (although the chocking had been a little (okay, a lot) extreme). In his eyes, stealing the Arkenstone _was_ betraying his kin, and the scary thing was, I had absolutely no idea how many of the others had believed what Thorin had said. What if they also thought I'd helped Bilbo? _But you did help Bilbo!_ I rubbed the increasing ache that was developing in my head. I'd have to face them sooner or later.

Fili had insisted on spending that night with me. I don't know what he thought I'd do (he'd insisted nothing), but I surprisingly slept extremely well that night. Well, it was more half a day and a night, but the point was that I'd slept entirely through it. He'd left soon after I'd woken up, but sitting against the wall nursing a developing headache was definitely not doing me much good.

Pushing myself up from the ground, I took a deep breath before leaving the room in search of the others. It didn't take long to find them; they were in the room where we normally slept (seeing as no one thought that bedrooms weren't a priority to renovate) and all looked pretty serious. I could see Thorin near the edge of the room, thoroughly avoiding looking in my direction as I entered. Although it was upsetting to have this tension with the Dwarf that had saved me from getting lost in the forest all those months ago, I couldn't help but feel grateful that he _wouldn't _look at me. Seeing the betrayal in his eyes would make me feel all the worse.

"What's going on?" I asked, seeing all their gazes setting on me as I entered the room, not one looking particularly joyful.

"Dain and his army have arrived." Replied Kili, sending a glance towards the main gate.

"Well…that's good, isn't it? I thought you wanted his army to arrive." I noticed Thorin give a glance in my direction at my word _you._ Well, I certainly never wanted Dain's army to arrive; that would mean war, and wasn't that what I was trying to avoid?

"Not really, lass." Said Bofur.

"Azog and his army are coming." Explained Balin. "We have called a truce with the men of Lake-Town and the Elves of Mirkwood to hold a meeting about what to do next."

At that news, all I could do was stand there and stare at Balin like he'd grown a second head. Azog had caught up with us. _Again_. Well…and think that I'd missed _a lot_ while I'd been asleep.

"Aye, lass." Said Dwalin. "And according to the Wizard, Bolg and his army are also advancing upon the mountain."

"Dwalin." Hissed Fili.

"The lass needs to know, lad!"

I stared between the two of them as they glared at each other before speaking up. "And who…who exactly is Bolg?"

"The son of Azog." Said Gloin. "It was a group of his Orcs that attacked us coming out of Mirkwood."

I nodded in understanding, my face expressionless. There was really no right reaction to what I was being told. Everything me and Bilbo had done (mostly Bilbo, but hey ho) had basically been for nothing. "So…what are we doing now, then? After the Elves and Bard get here? Are we going to…"

"_You're_ not doing anything." Said Fili, stepping up and giving me what I could only describe as his sternest expression.

"Excuse me?" I asked, raising my eyebrows.

"You're not doing anything." He repeated, taking another step forward.

"I'm sorry, it sounds as if you're ordering me here." I glared. Fili shrugged half-heartedly.

"Lass, he only wants to…" started Bofur.

"No!" I interrupted. "I don't appreciate being ordered about! I have come this far on this journey, I've made it this far! I've proved myself, not that well, I'll admit, but I have! So please don't treat me like I can't do anything or I won't understand or…"

I trailed off as Fili glared back at me. Not managing to even protest before he grabbed my upper arm, I growled as he pulled me out of the room and back to where I'd come from. Honestly, I'd barely been in there two minutes.

"Fili…Fili! Let go, you're hurting me!" I saw his eyes widen a fraction before he pulled his hand away. "Why the hell have you dragged me off anyway?"

"You're not fighting." He stated.

"What? I never said anything about…"

"You implied it. Don't bother denying it, I know you."

Suddenly the floor became very interesting. I couldn't bare to see the look on Fili's face; scared to see what emotions he was displaying. I had to admit, when Balin had said that Azog's army was coming, I told myself I had to fight with the others. After all, I couldn't just hide in the Mountain whilst everyone else fought. I was better than that; I was part of the company. And if, God forbid, they lost, dying in battle would be miles better than what would happen if the Orcs found me in the Mountain. And I wouldn't leave Fili's side.

"You're right." I admitted, looking up to look at Fili. Whilst his face was stern, I could see the underlying sadness in his eyes. He was worried, and he _really_ didn't want me to fight. "If it came down to it, I would fight with you all."

"Amaya, you're not…"

"No, Fili. I've told you, I will not be ordered around! I know I'm not the best fighter in the world, but I cannot stay here while I know that everyone that I love are out there fighting for their lives."

"Amaya…" he turned me around lifting up my shirt so he could run his hand down my back. "You have already been hurt…_scarred_…at the hands of those vile creatures."

"Those were Goblins…"

"They are one in the same! I will not see you hurt again. If I can protect you, then I will."

"Yeah? And are you forgetting the last time we fought Azog? What happened to you, Fili? Huh? You got cut across the chest! You could have died! This argument works both ways." I softened my expression as I placed a hand on his cheek. "You can say whatever you want, but whatever happens, I am going to remain by your side. I will defend your home; _our _home."

"Amaya, I can't…I can't let you fight. You are my world, if I lost you…"

"And what if I lose _you_?"

"You have no experience in battle."

"Neither do you." I argued.

"But I have had years of training! Please, _please_ listen to what I am saying! Dwarves are extremely protective of their One's. It has been tearing me apart on this journey watching as time and time again we got into some sort of danger and I couldn't do anything to help!" I lowered my eyes. "And now you're…you're talking like it's not even…even _dangerous_ going into battle!"

"Not even dangerous?" I echoed. "Fili, I know exactly how dangerous it is! This has been exactly what I've been trying to avoid. Well, it was actually against the Elves and Lake-Town, but this is even worse! But I can't sit here and wait for you all to come back…to wander if you are even going to come back…"

"I won't let you…"

"God!" I held my head in my hands. "We're just going around in circles here! Okay, can you tell me, in all honestly, if our roles were reversed…if _I_ was the one that was going to go out there, that _I_ was the one with all the fancy training, that you wouldn't follow me right out that gate." He just stared at me silently. "Exactly. I don't want to fight, Fee…honestly, the thought terrifies me…but sitting here on my own while all I can hear is fighting outside seems scarier. And at least you'll be able to keep an eye on me out there. It won't be like I'll be defenseless."

Fili swallowed thickly. "I can't…I am the worst betrothed in Middle-Earth…" he muttered. "I will think about it. But I cannot promise anything. Just…try to change your mind about this. Please." I nodded to humour him. I wouldn't. I mean, it was taking all of my courage to even voice that I wanted to fight, and I hadn't had much time to think about it considering I'd only heard about a battle a few minutes ago, but it was the right decision. I knew it was. "Thank you."

Smiling gently, I kissed him softly, humming in happiness as he wrapped his arms around my waist. "You're not the worst betrothed in the world." I said quietly. "You are the best. And I don't deserve you. But it's going to be fine. We're all going to get out of this alright. You'll see." Silencing any objections with another kiss, I led him out of the room back to where the others where, not wanting to start another argument about fighting. "So…what _are_ we going to do now?" I asked.

"Well," Fili thought. "Thorin, Kili, Dwalin, Balin and I are going to meet with the Elves, Bard and I'm assuming Dain to discuss battle tactics." I nodded in acknowledgment. "I don't know how long we'll be. Will you be okay?"

I furrowed my eyebrows. "I'll be fine, Fee. Why wouldn't I?"

"Well, I thought…"

"Fili, I'll be fine. I have a bit of bruising on my neck, nothing more. I'll just stay with the others." _If they'll still talk to me…_ "Don't worry."

-8-

Once Fili had gone off with the others to their meeting, I tried to navigate my way to where the rest of the company was, which was harder than I thought it would be. In the little time we'd been gone, Dain's army were just arriving and were currently wandering around the Mountain. To say I was intimidated was an understatement. A few hundred Dwarves all dressed in battle armour wearing various scary looking weapons were enough to make anyone feel uncomfortable. It was bad enough the first time I'd met the company; now I was feeling positively overwhelmed.

Seeing Bombur and Bofur over in the corner, I maneuvered my way over to them, sliding down the wall with a sigh of relief.

"You alright there, lass?" asked Bofur, casting me a concerned look.

"What? Oh yeah, thanks Bofur." I replied carefully.

"Ya know, lass…" he said slowly. "None of us really agree with what Thorin did yesterday." I saw him give a wary glance down at my neck.

"Really?" I scoffed.

"Really." Agreed Bombur, patting my hand. "He should never had laid a hand on ya."

I cocked my head to the side in confusion. "But…what about what I did? I helped Bilbo take the Arkenstone. I…I betrayed you all. By rights, you should all hate me."

"Maybe." Nodded Bofur. "But none of us blame you for that. You did what you thought was right. We don't hold it against you, lass; don't act so touchy around us. Besides, if Fili can look past it, I think the rest of us can too." He smiled.

"So we're okay?" I asked, hopefully. Things were going well here; things _never _went well.

Bofur chuckled. "We're okay."

Grinning, I looked around. "So, do you know any of these Dwarves?"

"No. They're from the Iron Hills. Leagues away from the Blue Mountains. Bombur and I don't travel that far."

"Right…and the Iron Hills is…"

"A mountain range a bit north-east from here. It is home to Dain and his people; a lot closer than the Blue Mountains to here."

I tried my best to ignore the other Dwarves in the room as I spoke with Bombur and Bofur. It wasn't as if I disliked them per say, why would I? But I knew that a lot of Dwarves weren't like those in the company; they wouldn't be as accepting. I was already beginning to feel as if I didn't belong here. I was in a Dwarven Mountain now filled with Dwarves. And here I was, a _human._ It didn't feel as if humans belonged in Erebor- as if _I_ belonged here yet, even if I had called it 'home' to Fili. So I did what I'd been doing since we arrived. I pushed my feelings to the back of my mind to deal with later. Something that would probably come back to bite me in the bum later.

It was some time later when Fili and the others came back, looking extremely grim, I'd noticed. Catching Fili's eyes, I waited until he'd walked over and looked at him with an expectant expression.

"They will be here within three days." He said, grimly.

-8-

A/N: I'm not too thrilled with the turn out of this chapter, it's not exactly very long, but next is the chapter we've all been waiting for. The battle is here! And I know _exactly_ what is going to happen. Their fates are in my hands! Wuhahaaha!

We've got a little bit of a domestic between Amaya and Fili here, because I honestly couldn't see Fili willingly letting his One just walk into battle, especially one led by Azog. And we're also seeing more of her insecurities coming through. Being in a mountain filled with Dwarves when you're the only human can't be easy, especially with some of Thorin's words still running around in her head.

And I can't believe I've hit 100,000 words with almost 100,000 views! You guys are the absolute best! So, let me know what you all think. Drop a review! Until the next update!


	39. Chapter Thirty-Nine

Chapter Thirty-Nine

I think that those three days were the worst ones of my life so far (and considering everything that we'd gone through on the journey to get here, I think that was saying a lot). Fili had been incredibly busy preparing battle strategies with Thorin, Dain, Gandalf, Bard and Thranduil in various meetings, although I could tell that Thorin was not exactly happy to be working with the latter two. This left me at a bit of a loss. If waiting for a huge Orc army to come and attack the mountain and probably kill us all wasn't enough, I wasn't appreciating some of the looks I was getting from some of the new-comers.

Word had quickly spread on how I was part of the company to come and reclaim the mountain, and a few select Dwarves were being particularly vocal about how I 'had no right to help on the quest'. I said nothing back, despite how much I wanted to retaliate. After everything I'd been through with the company, I figured I had as much right as any of them did; probably more seeing as they didn't even bother to help reclaim Erebor in the first place. But if we were going to be fighting in a few days time, I needed as few enemies as possible, so I kept quiet.

To try and ease my nerves (and Fili's by the sound of it), Kili had been training me as much as possible in a vain effort to get me comfortable with my new weapons. I wasn't doing too badly either; I'd managed to remember a lot of my previous training, although I could see the worry in Kili's eyes whenever he managed to disarm me. He didn't think I was ready, and in all honesty, I kind of agreed. I was surprised when I found out that he would be joining Fili with the meetings. When I voiced this to Kili, a scowl came onto his face as he said that Fili was only there as he was heir to the throne and Thorin felt he should learn about war.

Fili had obviously had a long conversation with Kili while I was gone once word had got out about our deadline. Kili had taken every opportunity possible when we were together to try and convince me not to fight.

"It's dangerous!" he shouted the second day we were training after he'd disarmed me. _Again_.

"This entire journey has been dangerous!" I retaliated, taking a deep breath to calm down.

"Not this type of dangerous, Blondie." He said, a softer look coming into his eye. "You are like my sister, Amaya. Never mind Fili for this moment. I don't think _I _would be able to cope if anything happened to you. And I know Thorin hasn't expressed it lately, but he feels the same. He cares for you, even if he hasn't managed to talk to you often over the journey. You haven't noticed but he's looked out for you. We all have. None of us want you to fight; you don't have to fight!"

"No. I do, Kili. That's what none of you understand. I know you all want to keep me safe. Trust me, I've had this conversation with Fili what seems like a million times. And if I could lock you all up here in the mountain, then I would. But I can't. So I have to settle to help you. In any way that I can. And…I can't cope with these looks that I'm getting! Everywhere I go, there they are. Like…like I'm not one of you and I'm not. Not really. I need to…to prove my loyalty somehow and I know it doesn't have to be by fighting… God, I'm phrasing this all wrong… I love you, Kili. You're like an older brother to me and I swore to myself I wouldn't let anything happen to any of you. And that's how I'm going to do it." I gave a faint chuckle as Kili smiled softly. "Now come on." I raised my sword. "Again."

I'd had to have that conversation with most members of the company over the last few days and let me just say, it was enough to get anyone incredibly stressed. So, here I was in the room that I had claimed, away from everyone else on the eve of battle. Well, I say _everyone…_

"I thought I'd find you here."

Looking up at Fili, I gave him a tired smile and patted the floor next to me. "Am I really that predictable?" I joked.

"To me." He replied. "Amaya…"

"I'm fighting, Fili."

He chuckled humourlessly. "I was sure that Kili would be able to convince you. He has quite a way with words. Gets him out of a lot of tight situations."

"Fili…listen…"

"I remember, this one time, when we were younger…we got lost in the woods outside of the Blue Mountains. Kili was adamant that he knew the way back. I must have followed him around like an idiot for hours before he finally admitted defeat! We had to sleep in the high branches of a tree that night…Kili was scared a gang of Orcs would come and kill us in our sleep even though they never came through that part of the forest. It took Uncle and a group of four other Dwarves to finally find us the next morning. Mother shouted so loudly saying we shouldn't wander off I was amazed her voice even got that loud. Of course, Kili, silver-tongued idiot that he is, managed to worm his way out of the situation. Claimed it was all my fault." He closed his eyes at the memory. "To get me back for stealing his bow the week before."

"Fili, why are you telling me this?"

"Mother would like you." He turned to look me in the eyes. "She would probably steal you away every time she saw you in the hallway, she always wanted a daughter. I think she looked forward to having someone to dress up and pamper."

"Fili…"

"I wanted to tell you everything. Everything about me, about my life. And to hear everything about yours. I haven't known you long enough…I always thought we'd have more time…"

"You're saying all this like you're sure we're going to die tomorrow. We co…we could make it." Even to my ears, that didn't sound very convincing.

"You haven't been hearing what they're saying at the meetings. The size of Azog's army, and with Bolg's on top of that…I don't think anyone would have a chance of surviving that." He shook his head. "Kili told me what everyone's saying about you." My eyes widened a fraction as I turned away. "They haven't been as quiet as you think they have. The company have noticed. You're one of us and you don't have to fight to prove that."

"Fee." I placed my hand on his cheek. "Can we please not talk about that tonight? I'm not going to change my mind. We're in this together. Just…hold me, please?" He gave me a gentle kiss in response, causing me to close my eyes and relish the feeling of how his beard scratched at my cheeks. I kissed him back, running my fingers through his hair and smirking at the small moan he gave as I pulled gently and ran my hand down his chest. "You know…" I murmured, leaning my forehead against his and smirking. "If tonight really is going to be our last night, then we should make it count."

-8-

Sleep did not come easy to me that night, despite the contentment in lying in Fili's arms for what could very well be for the last time. Perhaps that was why I couldn't sleep well. Whatever the exact reason was, I couldn't pinpoint it.

Letting my eyes stay shut, I nuzzled my head further into Fili's neck, laughing softly as his hand prodded me in the side tickling me. "Let's just stay here." I muttered. "Just…forget everything outside and stay here forever."

"As much as I would love to…" he replied lowly.

"…we can't." I finished. "I knew that." I rolled onto my back and sighed. "We should get up." Getting to my feet, I scanned the room in search for my clothes, relaxing into the arms that wrapped around my waist.

"If you are so worried about today…" he started, rubbing comforting circles on my skin with the pads of this thumbs.

"I'm not worried for me. I'm worried for you. And everyone else. Kili got hit with an arrow less than a month ago." My eyes drifted to the window. "I just…I always thought when I thought about battles and wars that it would be dark, you know? Raining and cloudy weather and stuff. But it all looks…normal…almost sunny."

Fili merely gave me a sad smile before handing me my clothes while picking up his own.

-8-

It felt like no time at all when Azog's army came within sights of the mountain. I stared out of a nearby window at the mass of Orcs in the distance, seeing even from far away, the numbers that that army held. It didn't seem like we stood a chance. I had no idea where Azog was in the entire thing, but the fact that I knew he was here sent shivers down my spine. That…_thing_ had caused us all nothing but trouble.

I knew that everyone in the mountain was currently preparing for battle- putting on their armor, sharpening their weapons and the like. I'd collected and put on mine a few minutes before making my way to the window, not wanting to be near any of the company at that moment. If I was, I knew that I would probably start talking crap about good-byes amongst other things, and I did not want to start that. There would be no good-byes because we would all make it through this. I was also incredibly worried that I hadn't seen Bilbo since everyone had entered the mountain. Evidently Gandalf had thought that Thorin was still too 'unstable', for want of a better word, to have the Hobbit around after his previous actions towards him and it made me sad. Truth be told, I missed Bilbo greatly. I considered him a great friend after everything we'd been through and I missed having him around to talk to. Fili and Kili were all well and good, but I couldn't talk about the same things with them that I could with Bilbo. I could only hope that he was somewhere safe.

"Ahem." Pulling my gaze away from the window, I turned around to face Dwalin, his face set in a grim line. "I wouldn't call that armor, lass." He grumbled, looking me up and down. I shrugged in response. He was right. I'd been given a chain mail coat to put over my usual clothes, and a thick looking coat with a belt to go on top. I'd had to turn down the shoulder plates as they'd dug painfully into my neck whenever I moved, but I doubted they would have helped anyway.

"It'll do." I replied, walking over and standing in front of him. "Is it…time?"

"Aye, lass. If the Orc army gets any closer…well, it'll be too close." He ran a hand down his face. "It's not too late, lass." I sighed. "None of us want to see you fight. It isn't right for a woman to fight, especially our future queen."

"What kind of queen would I be if I didn't defend my kingdom?" I asked, frowning.

Dwalin paused for a second. "Point taken, lass." He gave me what I took for a smile which I returned as I followed him over to where everyone was gathered in front of the main gate. My eyes immediately sought out Fili, seeing him besides his brother and uncle. Quickly walking over to him, I dropped the small sword I was holding to the ground and gathered him in a tight hug.

"Stay with me." He muttered in my ear, pulling away.

I smiled back. "Always."

"Amaya." As Thorin spoke, my smile dropped. I pulled away from the hug I was currently giving Kili and turned towards him with a blank expression. "I…apologise for my actions towards you. They were uncalled for and rash and you did not deserve them. I…would be honored to see you as queen one day and hope you accept my apology." I stared at him as he apologised, seeing how hard to was for the Dwarf to admit he was wrong. But his words meant a lot and I was in a rather emotional mood. So I did something I was sure I would regret. I hugged him. I hugged Thorin Oakenshield, the mighty King under the Mountain who barely cracked a smile. And the surprising thing? He hugged me back. "I am glad I found you." He whispered before pulling away facing everyone that was gathered.

"They are outside this gate," He shouted, looking around at everyone as he got their attention. "at this very moment, threatening to destroy everything that we have worked for! Everything that we have reclaimed. Erebor is our home, our birthright and we will not be threatened by a host of Orcs that think we will be so easy to defeat!" I looked around at the Dwarves as they cheered at his words. I've said it once, I'll say it again, dude knew how to make a speech. "We are sons of Durin. And Durin's folk do not flee from a fight. Will you follow me?" The Dwarves cheered. "To war!"

I think that running out of those gates was one of the bravest things I've ever done. Thorin was in the lead, as befit his status, with Fili and Kili following him on either side. I ran next to Fili, because where else would I be? I was barely aware of anything else behind me as I ran forward, holding up my sword and taking deep breaths to calm my nerves.

It seemed like barely any time at all when we reached the front lines of the Orc army. As I saw the snarls on their faces and the gruesome weapons most of them had taken, I nearly turned straight back around, but glancing to the side of me to see Fili's determined face, I carried on moving forward, swinging my sword down on the nearest Orc I could find. At that moment, all I could think about was how inexperienced I was at war. The Orc had held up its shield, blocking my blow which caused a shock to run up my arm. I glared up at it (as if it would make a difference), and swung again, only for it to block my swing with its own weapon- a huge battleaxe that looked like it could slice me clean in two. Clenching my teeth in annoyance, I moved my sword to the right only to swing it at the Orc from the left, cutting into its ribs with a sickening sound as I pulled the sword out. The Orc fell to the ground, breathing hard as it tried to swing its sword at me again. Breathing out of my nose, I raised my sword and stabbed the Orc in the back, watching with horror as it took a last shuddering breath before finally dying.

I could see Fili a few metres away from me, fighting three Orcs at a time and actually winning. Tearing my eyes away from him, I turned to see more Orcs advancing on me, obviously thinking that I was an easy target because I was a woman. Arrows were flying overhead but I ignored them as I focused on the attacking Orcs in front of me.

Most of the battle was a bit of a blur from that moment. The adrenaline from my first kill in battle was enough to give me more strength against the Orcs and I found that I didn't even need to think about any of my training to defend myself. I didn't even think about the fact that I was _killing_ these things. I just fought. I didn't know how long it was or after how many Orcs I had killed when I noticed that I had lost Fili. I pushed my fear for him aside. This was _Fili_, he would be fine. But as I looked around at the dead lying on the floor (praying that no one I knew were amongst them), I couldn't help the worry that built up.

I breathed deeply, looking around and catching sight of Bombur, who was fighting with a ferocity that I didn't know he possessed. "Bombur!" I shouted, sprinting over to near where he was. "Have you seen Fili?"

He glanced around as he beheaded an Orc with a single swing. "Not in a while, lass." Swallowing thickly, I nodded, turning around and raising my sword just as an Orc was about to swing its own down on me. It took me half the amount of time to kill this Orc than at the beginning, and after that, I spent my time searching the battleground for Fili while killing as many Orcs as I could. I managed to see Gloin, Dori, Oin and Bifur in my search, each one saying that they hadn't seen Fili (or Kili or Thorin when I'd asked) for a while.

God only knew how long we'd been fighting when I finally saw him again. He was covered in blood, some Orc and some of his own from the black and red I could see, and was fighting alongside his brother and Thorin. I ran across the battlefield, not bothering with any of the Orcs I past as I focused on my goal of getting to the three Durins.

Taking in large gulps of air as I ran, I locked eyes with Fili, smiling amidst everything despite the situation we were in. Until I saw an Orc come up behind him, an arrow aimed directly at his back. I shook my head and urged myself to speed up.

Upon reaching him, I ignored his questioning look and shoved him out of the way, yelling out in pain as an arrow embedded just underneath my collarbone.

"Amaya!" shouted Fili, his eyes widening in fear and panic.

"I'm…fine." I spluttered out, holding my sword up with my left hand as my right arm now hurt too much to move. "I'm fine…I'm fine…" I said to myself, trying to convince myself that it was true. What I wasn't expecting was the second arrow that hit me in my side, causing me to fall to my knees as I held my side in pain, dropping my sword to the ground.

Tears ran down my cheeks as I tried and failed to struggle to my feet and I could barely see Fili's face in front of me for the tears. "Mahal, Amaya…you're going to be okay. Mahal, no…it's okay." I nodded my head with him. "You were an idiot doing that, you know? You…you should have…"

"Let it hit you?" I asked, my voice as quiet as his was. "What kind of betrothed would I be if I did that?"

"A good one if it meant you lived!" he replied, his voice thick. "Which you will. You're going to be…Mahal, keep your eyes open, Amaya! Do you hear me?"

"Yeah…it's…it's only two arrow wounds, right? How bad could it be? I'm a Dwarf…I can take it." I chuckled weakly. "You should…carry on fighting. It's not…not safe for you to be…be sat here with me. You should be with…with Kili and Thorin."

"I'm going to stay with you." he replied. "Always. And we're going to have that life we talked about and we're doing to be _damn_ happy! I'm going to do everything I can to make you happy…"

I nodded slowly as my vision started to blur and a dull ringing sounded in my head. "It hurts, Fee…" I whispered, raising a bloodied hand up to his cheek.

"I know, miz sanâzyung. Just…just hold on, okay? This will end and we'll get you help."

"Mmmm…" I replied, my thumb stroking lazily along his cheek before my vision went black and the last thing I heard was Fili's yell.

-8-

A/N: I have been so worried about writing this chapter. I'm not going to lie, it was incredibly difficult to write, although I think that it has gone better than planned. I hope you guys all like the chapter. Drop some reviews to tell me your opinions. I like, I love, I lust for reviews!

There has been a lot of worry for Amaya fighting between her and members of the company as you may have noticed. It is purely because she means a lot to the company, she has become like their family. Add that to her being a female which are incredibly rare amongst Dwarves and that she would be the future queen of Erebor, and I think that the Dwarves would be incredibly against the idea of her fighting. It was not going to be purely Fili that tries to talk her out of it. But we all know Amaya, that was not going to stop her!

And the battle is still raging on, despite what fate had planned for Amaya towards the end of the chapter. Who will survive? Who won't? Who knows…

Thanks for all the support, until the next chapter! :)


	40. Chapter Forty

Chapter Forty

It had been a long hard battle that Dwalin didn't think they would win. Azog's army had outnumbered them by hundreds of Orcs and Dwalin had spent the entire battle fearing for his friends' and family's lives. Now it was over, if only for the fact that the Eagles and Beorn had come to help. Azog and Bolg had been killed, by whose hand he did not know, but in any case, it was over. But for one small detail.

He'd retreated back to the main gate once the fighting was over, desperate to know who had survived and who had not. He'd breathed a sigh of relief when he caught the sight of his brother standing not too far away, and had pulled him into a tight hug not caring if it was contrary to his usually tough demeanor.

"What news of the others?" he asked Balin, placing his battleaxe on a set-up bench nearby.

"Dori, Nori and Ori are over there." He pointed towards where Dori and Nori were fussing over a cut on Ori's arm. "They couldn't find him for a while and feared the worst. Oin is currently treating wounds and Gloin is around here somewhere. I'm not quite sure where he got to. I'd imagine Bifur is with him." Balin paused.

"And the others?" Dwalin asked.

"Bombur and Bofur are…looking for the others." Said Balin slowly, as if it pained him to say so.

"You mean…"

"Thorin and his nephews." Nodded Balin.

"And what about Amaya?"

"Aye, her too." Clenching his jaw, Dwalin gave his brother a pat on the shoulder before turning and walking back towards the battlefield. The dead littered the ground everywhere he looked and if he hadn't have seen so many battles, it would have turned his stomach. Not now though. Not after everything he'd seen in his lifetime.

He stepped around the bodies on the ground, glancing at each face of the Dwarves he saw, praying that none would be his long-time friend or the three youngsters. Battle was no place for three as young as they were.

It seemed like he'd been searching for hours when he finally came upon his King and family. Thorin was lying on his back, his hands covering a wound on his abdomen which was still lightly bleeding. His eyes were closed and his sword was not an inch from his fingers. Letting out a shuddering breath, Dwalin turned his head to the left, almost falling to his knees at the sight. His youngest nephew, Kili, was laying a couple of metres away, obviously having fallen defending his uncle. He hurried over to the young Dwarf, widening his eyes when he saw the inevitable. He was breathing, lightly, but breathing nonetheless.

"Bofur! Bombur!" he bellowed, gesturing over to the two brothers who were not far away. "Hurry!" He turned once he saw they were running over, only to actually fall to his knees at the sight he was met with. Not ten feet from where he was standing lay Fili and Amaya, their arms spread out as if they were reaching for each other.

Amaya had two arrows sticking out of her body, blood running down from the wounds onto the ground below her. Obviously she'd been fallen the longest judging from the dry blood that adorned her coat. Her usually smiling face was covered with dirt and blood and a frown adorned her lips. Her face was tilted towards where Fili was laying, his coat ripped from shoulder to hipbone with a long, deep cut, similar but much worse than the one he had suffered after the Goblin caves. Dwalin didn't need to hazard a guess to know that he had suffered the injury in defence of Amaya, trying to stop any more harm coming to her.

"Dwalin! Mahal…" Bofur came to a stop next to Dwalin, his eyes watering at the scene in front of him. "Are…are they all…"

"Kili." He replied. "As far as I know. He's still breathing. The others…I don't know…Mahal, Thorin…"

"Bombur!" yelled Bofur. "C…check Thorin. See if he's…breathing."

Dwalin was barely aware of any other Dwarves that were gathering around them as he shifted closer towards Amaya. He rested his hand on her cheek, rubbing away some of the tear tracks on her skin with his thumb. "She would have made a perfect queen." Muttered Balin, who came up to stand behind his brother.

"Aye, she would ha…_Mahal…_she's breathing." It was short and shallow, as if she was barely hanging on, but there was no mistaking it. "She's breathing…"

"So's the lad!" yelled Bombur. "We need to get them medical help!"

-8-

If the battle had seemed long, waiting for news on the four critically injured Dwarves seemed longer. They'd quickly carried all four of them towards the tents that had been set up for any injured, isolating one exclusively for them. No one was allowed to enter except Gandalf, Oin and some Elves that they had begrudgingly let help them. The aura around the tent seemed incredibly somber and as Dwalin looked around at everyone outside of it, he saw the grief he so clearly felt etched on all of their faces. He even noticed Beorn and the Elf prince Legolas standing too near for his liking.

"What are you doing here, Elf?" he asked, his long-lasting hatred for the race only slightly dwindled in the midst of his grief.

"I am here in respect of those inside the tent, Master Dwarf." The Elf replied curtly. "Despite all that has happened, I grew quite fond of the girl inside, despite our brief interactions. She does not deserve this fate."

"None of them do." Growled Dwalin.

"Indeed. Please do not forget that we have both lost kin in this war. Our battle should not be with each other."

Dwalin gave a grunt in response as Legolas walked away from him towards some other Elves, his attention now solely on the entrance to the tent. Someone had to come out with news sooner or later, and he fully intended to be there once they did. The entire future of Erebor lay in that tent: their king, their future king and queen, and their prince. He had nothing against Dain should he have to become king, but he hadn't sacrificed everything to reclaim the mountain and Dwalin didn't think he could face it if Dain ruled.

He must have been stood outside of the tent for at least four hours before Gandalf reappeared, his face not doing anything to reassure them as he wiped his brow.

"They are resting." He said, his voice sounding as tired as he looked.

"And?" asked Dwalin, rather impatiently.

"Some are…doing better than others. Perhaps it would be best if you were to go inside, Master Dwarf?"

Taking Gandalf's advice, Dwalin braced himself for whatever he might see inside before striding inside. The four members of their company had been laid on several make-shift beds around the tent, far enough away from each other to allow room as they were treated. He went to Thorin first. He was still unconscious and his sword lay on the table beside him.

"H…how is he?" he asked Oin, who was the only healer to remain in the tent.

"Doing better than we thought he would have. His wounds were extremely severe." Replied Oin, who himself was looking incredibly worn. Dwalin could hardly blame him. Having just survived a battle of this size, having to heal one of your closest friends right after was not something you ever wanted to deal with. Sometimes the strength of his kin, both mental and physical, never ceased to amaze him. "I don't want to be the one to tell you this, Dwalin, but I highly doubt that he will make it through the night. We'll do our best, but…"

"I understand." Dwalin didn't want to hear anymore. Thorin could not…no, Thorin _would _not die. He'd been through too much with him to part with him now. "What of the others?"

"Master's Kili and Fili are holding up well. I have no doubt that they'll wake sooner rather than later. As for Miss Amaya, I do not know."

"You do not know?" echoed Dwalin, with furrowed brows.

"Is she going to be alright?" It was Ori's voice that caused the warrior to turn, revealing the remainder of the company standing there with varied expressions, some with exhaustion and others with sadness written upon their faces.

"She was injured a lot earlier than the others, I fear. And the arrows she was struck with contained a poison similar but a lot more concentrated than the one Kili was struck with back before Lake-Town. Add that to the blood loss and that is not a combination easy to heal."

"But yer've helped her?" asked Bofur.

"Aye." Oin nodded. "And the Elves have tried their best to extract the poison."

"'Tried their best?'" asked Gloin.

"They assumed me they did all they could. For all four of them. All we can do now is wait."

-8-

When Fili finally awoke, he felt as if his chest had been set ablaze. Whenever he tried to move sent a new flare of pain throughout his body and it felt like hours before he was able to even twitch a finger. It took him even longer to even attempt to try and open his eyes. His body felt heavy and his eyes felt incredibly groggy; opening them seemed like the hardest thing he'd ever had to do.

When he finally opened them, he had to blink for several minutes before his eyes became accustomed to the light. Looking around with his limited view, he discovered that he was in a room he did not know. He was lying on a very old looking bed, although it didn't lack for comfort (thankfully), and the only other things he could see in the room were a set of drawers, a chair and a wardrobe.

"Fili?" The Dwarf in question snapped his head to the door to see Kili standing there with a small smile on his face. "You're awake."

"Y…yeah." he stuttered, his voice course after being unconscious. "H…how long have I been…?"

"About three days." Replied Kili, dragging a chair over to his bedside. "You had us all worried sick."

"Three d…days?"

"Yeah. I woke up after about a day. I've been waiting for you to wake up." He chuckled before pausing for a second. "Fee…you should know…Amaya, she's still not awake. And…uncle…"

"What happened?" He could see Kili start to tear up at his words.

"Uncle…didn't make it." He whispered.

"Uncle didn't…" Fili let the words digest for a moment before he said anything else. How could Thorin not have made it? He was one of the strongest Dwarves Fili knew. The one he had always gone to when he needed advice, who taught him everything he needed to know about being the heir of Durin. His father figure in his life. "How could he not have…survived? This is _Thorin _we're talking about. He's too stubborn to just…_die…_"

"I know. But his wound…I don't think anyone could have lived through that, from what I've heard. He's in a better place now, Fee. With uncle Frerin and grandfather."

"I just…" he swallowed painfully. "He never got to be king, to see Erebor restored! Not truly…_Mahal…_ this doesn't mean…"

Kili gave him a rueful smile. "It will be a while until your coronation, I think. In respect of uncle's memory. And to allow you time to recover." What little colour that Fili's face had had vanished. "You always knew you were going to be king eventually, Fili, why do you look so worried?"

"I always thought it would be…_years _before I became…king. And I didn't think it would be right when we were trying to rebuild a kingdom!" It seemed that he was wide awake now. "I…I'm not ready, Kee. I don't know what to do. And Amaya…she was already having doubts and…where is she, anyway?"

Kili paused again. "You must have missed it when I said it earlier. She's not awake yet."

"Not awa…" Suddenly, memories of the battle came rushing back. Him fighting multiple Orcs, seeing Amaya in the distance, watching as she ran past him only to save him from a fatal arrow wound, her being hit again. He'd thought her dead as her eyes fluttered shut as he held her; he settled his rage on brutally killing anything that dared come close to her body until he missed one block and stumbled to the ground clutching his chest in agony. "How did I forget…?"

"You've been unconscious with a serious chest wound for three days, Fili. Give yourself a break. She's in the best possible care. She'll wake up soon, just you see."

"How is she? I mean…I thought she was d…dead. How…?"

"Well, she nearly was according to Dwalin. The arrows were poisoned so we've had to have some Elven healers looking after her and she lost quite a lot of blood…"

Fili felt like he couldn't breathe. "This…this is my fault. I should have…have _made_ her stay here. She'd still be…I am the worst One in the world. She didn't deserve me, I should have…"

"Fili." Interrupted Kili, a serious look on his usual playful face. "You can spend your days muttering about what you should have done or you can work on recovering so you can be there when she wakes up. The choice is yours." And with that, he left the room in search of Oin.

-8-

A/N: Shame on me for not updating after that last chapter! I went on holiday to Turkey and only got back early last Tuesday morning. But that was my 18th birthday so since then I've been really busy with family and work and what not. But I really didn't pick a good chapter for no update in a month or so! Oops!

I hope this chapter reads well. I had to change POV's a couple of times seeing as Amaya is a bit indisposed at the moment… And I can't believe I actually went through with killing Thorin off! :'( And Amaya's fate is still very uncertain…

As always, follows and reviews are always welcome!


	41. Chapter Forty-One

Chapter Forty-One

It was another three days before Fili was able to move off of his bed without agonizing pain. His legs felt weak as he put any sort of weight on them, and the pain was definitely still there, but it was bearable. His brother was still visiting him everyday, along with other members of the company, but he found he was missing the two people that were unable to come. His uncle Thorin, who he could never talk to until he too entered the Halls of Mandos, and Amaya. He'd asked Kili for updates every time his brother came to check on him (which occurred many times throughout the day) and every time Kili would say the same, "She's still resting brother. We're doing everything we can."

But everything wasn't good enough for Fili. He needed to see her, to talk to her and have her say that everything would be okay like he knew she would. He needed her comfort and her warmth, something that only his One could provide. She plagued his every thought, both when he was awake and asleep, and barely any of them consoled him. She still wasn't awake after six days following the battle; it certainly wasn't looking good for her recovery.

"Fee, I felt fit to collapse when I was hit with that arrow back near Lake-Town, although I like to think I hid it well." Said Kili, trying to reassure him when he'd come into the room to see Fili nearly fall out of bed in his bid to get up, two days after waking up. "The Elves are saying that the poison in Amaya is a lot more concentrated, and she was hit twice, Fee. But we're trying our best."

"But what if she doesn't wake up?" asked Fili, weakly.

"I don't know how to answer that. It's scaring me too, Fils, so I don't know how this is affecting you. All you can do is try and recover. For her at the very least. Dain's ruling the Mountain in your stead, working on restoring it and removing all evidence of the battle outside, but _you_ are Thorin's heir. I don't think I'd make a very good king, so I'm counting on you to get better." He gave Fili a cheeky grin.

Kili's words fell to deaf ears however. Fili didn't want to hear how he was Thorin's heir or what was being done to the Mountain while he was recovering. He didn't want to be king if Amaya wouldn't be by his side. How was he supposed to do anything if she wasn't by his side? The thought of a Dwarf living without their One was unbearable; even the last three days had been agonizing without her. Even if he was just by her bedside. That would make him feel a little better at least, although he was scared about what he would see.

So when Oin had cleared him for walking around ('take it easy, laddie, or you'll be back in that bed for another week'), obviously his first destination was Amaya's bedside.

"We thought that'd be where you'd want to go, lad." Said Balin, looking wearier than Fili could ever remember the old Dwarf looking. Of course, Fili couldn't blame him; he doubted Balin ever thought about outliving Thorin and the battle had taken its toll on them all. "She's a few doors down."

The walk to 'a few doors down' felt like miles as he made his way down the corridor. His legs were stiff from lack of use and every step sent a flare of pain throughout his chest. Despite his reluctance, Kili walked alongside him, providing him with a body to lean on as he walked. By the time he eventually made it to Amaya's door, he felt out of breath and slightly dizzy, although he pushed those feelings to the side as the door opened in front of him.

"I can…I can walk from here." He said, avoiding looking people in the eye. Removing his hand from Kili's shoulder, Fili summoned up a last bout of strength and limped inside the room, collapsing gratefully into a chair beside one of two beds in the room.

On the bed nearest him, lay the woman he'd been thinking about the past three days. Although she was looking better than he'd imagined she would, he still had to swallow the lump in his throat at her appearance. She had the beginnings of colour starting to appear on her skin (obviously she was beginning to overcome the severe blood loss she'd suffered) although she had black rings circling under her eyes. Her hair seemed to have lost the shine it usually had and her face was twisted with an expression that made it seem like she was having a nightmare. He could see the makings of a bandage wrapped around her shoulder protecting the arrow wound on her collar bone, a faint strain of blood coming through the white, and he had no doubt there would be a similar one wrapped around her middle for the wound in her side. The lower part of her body was covered with a blanket.

He ignored the other small cuts and bruises that adorned her body as he reached across and took her hand, pressing the back of it to his lips. While she didn't look like she was on death's door like he'd feared she would, she still wasn't awake and that seemed just as bad.

"We thought, if we put her in a bigger room, you could stay with her…if you'd like. The bed over there was…for you, if you wanted." Came Kili's voice from behind him. Turning his head slightly, he saw that the others had left them alone.

"Why couldn't I have stayed here in the first place?" asked Fili, returning his gaze to Amaya as if that would wake her.

"Oin wanted your first priority to be resting and recovering from any shock you might have." Replied his brother, quietly.

"My first priority is always going to be you and Amaya." he said frowning, pausing for a moment. "Can I have some time alone, please?"

"Yeah, of course." He felt a comforting hand on his shoulder. "Everything will work out. You'll see."

Nodding, Fili waited until the door had closed before he said anything. "Miz sanâzyung." He said, hoping she'd hear his familiar words and wake up. He'd heard similar stories. "I…I know I haven't been the best One in the world. You probably deserve so much more than me. After everything I've put you through on this quest, you'll probably agree…but I'm too selfish to just give you up so I'm afraid you're stuck with me unless you say otherwise. Because I'm not going anywhere." He swallowed thickly and took a deep breath. "I'm going to be right here when you wake up and I'm going to be there every step of the way as you recover. Because you promised you'd marry me and I'm not going to let you break that promise." He twisted the ring that still adorned her finger. "I should have locked you in this bloody Mountain. I am never going to forgive myself for this."

-8-

"_...Miz sanâzyung…" _Amaya floated in and out of consciousness. Occasionally she heard words- never whole conversations- of what was going on around her, but she couldn't muster the strength to move a single muscle, let alone open her eyes or reply to whoever was there. Her body felt like it was afire, every muscle ached and it felt as if there was something pounding in her skull. All she wanted was to wake up, to have an end to the blackness that was constantly around her.

She didn't know which was worse, being awake or slipping back into unconsciousness. While she was asleep, she was constantly plagued with nightmares. She was back at the battle but she was unable to save anyone, she was in Lake-Town watching the entire town be burned and was too late to escape, she was back in Goblin-Town but no one had come to save her. Whatever she dreamt, the ending was never happy and the faces were never clear. Sometimes she could barely remember her own name, let alone anyone else's, which just make being awake all the more frustrating.

She'd heard multiple voices while she was unable to open her eyes, but she couldn't pinpoint any of them. There was one that was constantly opening and replacing her bandages (which hurt more than anything she'd ever experienced, although all she could do was lie there and wait for the pain to dull), someone else who had lost his uncle by the sounds of it, another that spoke about going home to somewhere called the Shire. But no matter how much she tried to remember, the names would not come to her.

"…_too selfish to just give you up…"_ But she knew that voice…that voice that sounded more familiar than any of the others… _"…I'm not going anywhere…"_ Images ran through her mind as she tried to pinpoint who it belonged to. Meeting a blond-haired stranger and blushing like a school girl when he kissed her hand, learning about Dwarven culture as he taught about the meaning of braids and a Dwarf's One, learning how to use a sword for the first time, having him give her a long-speech on how much he loved her, their first kiss…

_Fili!_ The name came back to her almost in an instant. It was Fili, of course it was Fili! How could she have forgotten him? He was there, he was right next to her, talking and she couldn't reply. But that must have meant that he was okay. He'd survived the battle, she'd saved him! She'd made a difference, she'd proved to everyone that she deserved to be here, that she was worthy to be with him. Galadriel said her part was still yet to play. Surely she'd played her part. Her part was to save Fili, to make sure he survived and became king. Despite everything, at least she could rest a little happier knowing that.

"…_you promised you'd marry me…"_ Yes, she'd promised she'd marry him. But how was she supposed to do that when she couldn't even open her eyes. She tried in vain to move even an inch, a twitch of the finger, a flutter of her eyelashes to let him know she could hear him, but any attempt left her feel even more drained than she did before, and it wasn't long after that she felt herself slipping into unconsciousness once again. _"…never going to forgive myself for this…"_

-8-

Fili had opted to stay in the room from that point on. He'd told her that he was going to be there when she woke up and he fully intended to keep that promise. According to Oin and an Elvish healer that had checked his wounds along with Amaya's the next day, his wound was healing better than expected, but that didn't mean that it hurt any less. It was still very far from being fully healed at any rate, and there was no doubt that it would be another scar on his chest to join his other. _A reminder of my failure to protect her_, he thought to himself dully.

He'd found out from Balin that Thorin's funeral was to take place a week that day, although Fili also heard the underlying statement in his words. _Prepare yourself, the coronation will not be long afterwards._ But perhaps he was just reading into things that weren't there…it wasn't a secret between him and his brother that he was not ready to be king. He was pretty sure even Thorin knew, although his uncle never said anything. Fili didn't want to face the responsibility, the council meetings, the stress that he was sure would come. He didn't think he'd ever be ready, but he was at least expecting another fifty or so years before this time would come. Of course, he could just pass up the throne, say he didn't want it and pass it on to Kili. But there was not a doubt in his mind that Kili would pass it on as well, leaving Dain to take the crown, and despite everything, Fili couldn't let that happen. He couldn't let Dain rule the Mountain, not when Fili knew his uncle would want _him_ to rule. _Him,_ a son of Durin. All those lessons he'd had with Thorin on how to be a good king, they wouldn't be for nothing. If he had to be king, he would be a good king at least. He'd learnt from the best, after all.

It was the fifth day after Fili had awoken that something finally happened. He'd been sat at Amaya's bedside at the time, as was his usual place when he wasn't sleeping. He'd not left her bedside for a moment since entering the room other than when he was in his own bed across the room. How could he do anything whilst his One was lying unconscious? How was he supposed to do _anything_ if she didn't wake up? But Kili and the others were adamant in his presence that she was going to. Behind closed doors, he doubted they said the same, but he was grateful for their fake optimism nonetheless.

Until now.

She'd made no movements since he'd seen her. Not a single twitch or a single sound. So it was a huge shock to his system when he saw a twitch of her finger out of the corner of his eye. It only lasted a second, and he would have thought that he'd imagined it if she had not done it again a moment later.

Breathing deeply, Fili gently reached over (ignoring the pain that ran up his chest at the movement) and swept a strand of hair away from her face, which he'd just noticed had changed expression for the first time since he'd seen her. It looked more like it was in pain than having a nightmare, and it did nothing to reassure him.

"It's okay, miz sanâzyung." He murmured softly, slowly stroking his thumb over her cheek. "I'm here, everything's okay. Just…open your eyes. Come back to me."

-8-

A/N: Oooooooh! What's going to happen next? I'm going to say, as evil as this is, I love to keep you all in suspense! I don't know how far I'm going to take this story, a few more chapters perhaps. But I have some ideas in mind that I hope you will all quite like. And I'm going to try and make the chapters a bit longer as I feel like this one is a bit short.

I loved hearing your response to the last chapter, I had no idea it was so emotional as some of you said, but I'm happy it was well received! Every writers dream!

I do have a new side blog on Tumblr that I've made this past day where I'm taking in short requested one-shot style fics at if any of you want to request something on there?

Thank you for the reviews and follows. I love you all my beautiful readers! Lots of love :)


	42. Chapter Forty-Two

Chapter Forty-Two

Every movement hurt, as it had every second that I'd been awake. I was tired and all I wanted to do was open my eyes and sit up. To see Fili and make sure he was okay; that I wasn't imagining anything while I'd been, well, out of it for want of a better phrase. But the main thing was that I could finally hear clearly at least. I could hear everything around me, and all I wanted was for everyone to _shut up_. Since barely twitching my finger and regaining proper hearing, I'd been hearing more and more people entering the room and the increasing volume was doing nothing to help the pounding in my head.

"Is she waking up?" I heard somebody ask.

"It's likely." Replied someone else. "Just give her some room, laddie."

"I'm not leaving her side."

"Would you all just…shut up?" I said, quietly. Well, _tried _to say anyway. I'm pretty sure it actually came out as a very slurred attempt on words that no one was really able to understand.

"She just…Kili, she just spoke! Amaya, miz sanâzyung, can you open your eyes? Are you okay?" _Okay, that's definitely Fili. Now, all you need to do is just open your eyes. Simple. _It wasn't simple. It felt as hard as it had the last time I'd woken up. But I'd managed to move this time. I hadn't done that since…I couldn't remember exactly. But if I'd moved, surely I'd be able to open my eyes.

So I tried. And I tried. And I tried again. And after what felt like hours later, I finally managed it. How I have no idea because I felt both mentally and physically drained, but I had _finally _opened my eyes.

Only to be blinded straight after. "Jesus…" I moaned, squeezing them shut again.

"Amaya. Oin, Oin! She's awake!"

"Okay laddie, just move to the side. I need to do a check up." I heard the sound of chairs scraping against the floor (along with some mumbled curses that I chose to ignore) before feeling a cup being placed between my lips. I took long, deep gulps of the water inside (tasting a hint of something else added to it), not even caring about the burning sensation at the back of my throat as I felt my thirst quench. "Okay, lassie." He said, gently. "I need you to open your eyes again. Can you do that?" Groaning slightly, I slowly opened my eyes again, having to blink them as fast as I could to avoid the glare of light coming from the window. "Good. Now can you remember your name?"

I barked out a chuckle, happy that speaking now seemed a little less painful than it had before. I just needed to get used to talking again. "Well, considering Fili's said it enough times the past few days, I think so."

"She's still got her sense of humour, that's for sure." Said Kili, who I saw was standing near the edge of the doorway out of the corner of my eye.

"Yes, well…" coughed Oin. "You've given us all quite a scare, lassie. We weren't sure you were going to wake up for a moment." Seeing my scared, wide-eyed look, Oin cleared his throat and looked towards Fili. "Not that, ah…"

"What he means to say, lass," Said Balin, who was looking a lot older than I remembered him the last time I'd seen him. "Is that we're all happy you're okay."

"Thanks." I smiled back, hoping it didn't look more like a grimace. "So…how long have I been…unconscious?"

"Just over a week." Replied Kili.

"And everyone else is okay?" I frowned when I saw everyone pause. "What? Who is it? Bilbo? Is Bilbo okay? Was it Dwalin?" We couldn't have lost a member of the company. After everything that we'd all been though…no.

"You seen to be holding up well enough for now, lassie." Said Balin. "How about you have some words with Fili and we'll check up on you later?"

"Wha…uh, yeah. Okay." Grunting with the effort, I slowly lifted my arm up to rub at my eyes, which felt incredibly icky with gunk and other things that had accumulated while I'd been sleeping. "I don't think I've ever felt this rough." I said, taking on a light tone despite the fact that the situation definitely didn't call for it.

Taking a glance at Fili- the first I'd seen of him since properly waking up- I wasn't shocked to see him frowning at my words. He looked thoroughly worn out with dark rings under his eyes and his movements seemed strained, as if too much movement would be too much for him. Even his hair seemed messy, and Fili's hair _never _looked messy.

"You're hurt." I stated, furrowing my eyebrows and muffling a painful moan as I tried and failed to prop my body up against the head of the bed. My head throbbed. "You should sit…"

"You're not the one that should be telling me what to do." He replied, sitting down despite his words.

"Fee…"

"No." he interrupted. "You…you almost died, Amaya. You were there and you took that arrow instead of…"

"Instead of it hitting you." I finished, not missing the tears that had welled up in his eyes. "And I'd do it again."

"I told you to stay in the Mountain!" he exclaimed, angrily wiping his eyes. "I don't…I cannot describe the relief at seeing you awake and…and _alive_. But…if you'd have stayed here…"

"You would have died. And I couldn't have lived with the fact that I could have stopped it. I've seen that moment time and time again in my dreams, with ending after ending, each one of them different. But the ones where I took that arrow for you were the best ones, because I knew I'd kept you safe. Because you are my everything and I can't loose you." Yet I couldn't blame him for being partially angry with me. If our places had been switched and he'd been on deaths door, I would probably have exactly the same reaction. But I was on the receiving end, and incredibly tired and worn out even from the few minutes that I'd been awake, and I couldn't be dealing with any of Fili's rantings right now. "Why did everyone get so quiet when I asked how everyone was?" _Changing the subject, this should work, _I thought as I coughed_._

At my words, Fili's face dropped its stern expression and donned an almost pained expression. "Fili, what is it? What aren't you telling me?"

"No, no…everyone's fine." He said, leaning over to take my hand in his. I sighed in content at the first physical contact that I was able to reciprocate. "It's…uncle."

"What about him?"

"He…he didn't…I mean he…" I squeezed Fili's hand in comfort as he struggled for words as my stomach dropped. _No, no! Thorin cannot be dead! He was one of the toughest people on the quest. He found me. He is the reason I met the company. He can't be…_But I continued to comfort Fili as he let his emotions out. Thorin was his uncle, and despite the family feelings _I'd_ felt towards Thorin, he was _actually_ family to Fili; the closest thing he'd had to a father. Obviously he would be grieving more than me. More than most other people and he wouldn't be allowed to show it. Not with the entire Mountain watching his every move. But I made it clear through my actions that he was free to show his grief with me, as I would with him. And I found myself thankful that I'd made my peace with Thorin before the battle. We hadn't left it on a bad note. I was thankful for that at least, but it didn't lessen the pain of his death any more.

"It's okay, Fili. Grief is…normal. He's your family." I swallowed thickly as I tried to think what to say. "I…heard you. Before."

Fili furrowed his eyebrows in confusion. "Before?"

"When you were saying how you were never going to leave me. And how you were going to marry me. You know, that whole speech when I was still unconscious." Fili blushed as he gave out a short chuckle.

"Yes, that. Well, I certainly meant it, you know." he smiled. "When you get better and the Mountain is restored. Of course, mother would need to arrive. She would probably kill me and Kili if I got married without her here. And it would have to be after…"

"After what?" I asked. Fili mumbled something incomprehensible. "What was that?"

"My coronation." He mumbled, downcast.

"Your coron…" I trailed off. Of course. Thorin was the rightful heir to the throne of Erebor. And now he was…dead…obviously the throne went to _his _heir. Which was Fili. Fili was going to become King under the Mountain. Fili was going to be a _king_. And he was going to marry me. Soon. Which meant I was going to be queen. Much, much sooner than I'd expected. I sighed unevenly. This all seemed like too much this soon after waking up. "Right, yeah."

"I don't…I can always abdicate the throne." Looking into his eyes, I saw that he was deadly serious. He really would renounce any claim he had to becoming king if I felt _that _strongly about the matter. And that was something I couldn't let him do. This wasn't about me.

"Fee, I can't let you do that." I told him. "I know it's going to be a lot of stress, and if you are doing it for your _own _reasons then I'll support you with whatever you want, but you don't have to abdicate anything. It's what Thorin would want, what you've been working towards for your entire life and I'm going to stand by your side throughout it all. When I can stand that is. And I am going to be _so _proud of you." I smiled.

Fili gave me a soft smile. "I thought you'd died out there." He whispered, shifting to the side so his hand could rest against my cheek easier. "I just…I lost it out there when you didn't wake up."

"You better not have done anything stupid." I replied, leaning into his touch.

He just gave me a rueful smile in return. "I thought you'd died…I couldn't imagine living without you. I had nothing left to loose. I got reckless."

"And that's why you got hurt. How badly were you hurt?" I asked.

Fili didn't answer. He merely lifted up the shirt he was wearing and tossed it over his head with a few painful grunts. When I saw his chest, I took in a jagged breath. His previous scar from after the goblin caves was still there- A faint pink line that ran down his side from his right shoulder. Now added to that, was a much deeper, longer scar that cut across his body from the side of his left shoulder, ending just above his right hipbone. It looked red, obviously in the first stages of healing and it was no mystery to me now why it seemed so painful for him moving around.

"Fili…" I breathed. "You shouldn't be here, you should be lying down…!" I gasped in pain as I shuffled in my bed, causing Fili to leap up and settle me back down.

"So should you. I am in better health than you. I've been awake much longer and sustained wounds a lot less life-threatening than yours. You need rest."

"No, I don't. I need…"

"…rest. You've had enough stress and action for the day." He finished. "I'll call Oin back in for you."

-8-

I saw an awful lot of Oin in the next few days. According to him, I was healing incredibly well considering that that amount of blood loss and poison should have killed me. As if that little bit of information was supposed to make me feel any better. It didn't. I could still feel the aftermath of the poison throughout my body making my limbs feel heavy although I was assured my body would burn off the little that was left in no time. The only bright side of having to stay in bed all day was the fact that Fili seemed to be sharing my room with me. However Oin had threatened to move him back to his old room on more than one occasion. He'd been extremely…I guess caring is the right word for it. If I made one little sound, he was by my bedside in a heartbeat (despite the pain he obviously still felt moving) asking if I needed anything. _Was I okay? Did I want him to call for Oin? Was I hungry? Thirsty? Needed any pain relief? Did I want to talk about anything? Did I have any nightmares last night?_ Oin and myself both had to tell him on more than one occasion that that amount of movement was not good for him this early on. Not that he'd listened. He just called the questions on his way over to me now.

The entire company came to visit us while we were resting. Times that I'd quickly come to crave. Being with Fili was all well and good, of course it was, but without the change of scenery I was beginning to long for anything of the outside world. And I was happy to see that all of the company were okay. Well, all but one… My nightmares of not being able to save everyone were just that. _Nightmares_.

Kili was like a breath of fresh air in the day. It was hard to believe he'd also been injured in the battle considering the seemingly good health he seemed to exhibit. He brought constant news of what was going on in the Mountain and the work being done to restore it. He'd obviously taken the death of Thorin harder than the others if his occasional mopey mood was anything to go by, but for the most part, he was refreshingly upbeat.

Bofur, Bifur and Bombur popped by sometimes with some home-made food Bombur had made. Food that, now we had proper ingredients, tasted like the best food I'd ever had. Bofur had even carved a little wooden figure of a woman holding a miniature sword that was apparently supposed to be me. I'd put it on the table next to my bed I'd had brought in, telling him 'I'd treasure it forever'. He'd shrugged the compliment off and promised to make a similar one for me that resembled Fili. Since I couldn't really have a conversation with Bifur (still, after the entire journey), I'd settled to just talking _to _him and smiling. Dori, Nori and Ori stopped by once or twice (I was closer to Ori than his two brothers so he visited more than they did), presenting me with a drawing Ori had drew of Fili and I. He must have drawn it one night when we were travelling, because I was tucked into his side in my sleep while he leant against a rock. Ori had blushed when I complimented his picture.

Gloin sometimes came with his brother, although he mostly spoke to Fili when he did. It was Balin and Dwalin I saw the least. Kili told me it was because they were involved the most with the restoration of the Mountain and I didn't doubt his words. Dwalin and Balin had told me this themselves when they'd come, and apologized for not coming again sooner.

And then there was Bilbo. I had been incredibly shocked to find out that he'd been found unconscious near the edge of the battle, hidden from sight by his magical ring. It was only blind luck of someone stumbling into his unconscious form that allowed him to be found. I was just happy to find out he was okay. Despite everything he'd done for the company (there was no way we'd be here without him, after all), the Hobbit wasn't a fighter. At least not in a battle. Look at what had happened to _me_, after all! But I liked his visits. He spoke of returning home to the Shire and how he was looking forward to going back to his books and armchair. Although I was sad to hear he was going to leave so soon, I smiled at how happy he was to be returning home. And he'd assured me and Fili (and the rest of the company, I'm sure) that we were welcome to stop by at Bag-End any time; an offer I was sure I would take him up on. I wasn't letting the Hobbit get away that easily.

It was only a couple of days before Thorin's funeral that I actually found out when it was taking place. Fili had only mentioned it in passing one evening while he was helping me eat- I still couldn't move my shoulder very well and it made eating soup (Bombur's dish of the day since supplies needed to be restocked) quite hard. He'd mentioned getting a dress fitted the next day if I was well enough to stand for a few moments (if not, I'd have to make do with what was available). Of course it would have to be alterations of a pre-made dress by someone in Lake-Town, but I was more shocked at the news of Thorin's funeral to worry about a dress. It didn't seem like the pain would ever end, but I told myself every night before I went to sleep, I just had to take it one day at a time. So I did just that. And each day, I found myself slowly become a little stronger.

-8-

A/N: again, it's been a while since my last update. But since then I've had my A-level results, sorting things for university (which I'm so excited for!) and so much work it's making me sad. And this chapter was actually quite hard to write. Considering most of the rest is going to be my own writing with no movie help, updates will probably take a little longer, but I hope it will be worth it! I am hoping for about 50 chapters, but I don't know if that will be possible or not. Only time will tell.

Make sure to review and favourite! Until the next update!


End file.
